Hailed as a 'superfood' due to their antioxidant content, what most non-geeks don't know about blueberries is that their levels of these health promoting compounds actually vary dramatically between cultivars.
The homegrown variety 'Rubel', for example, delivers three times the antioxidant payload of supermarket staples like 'Bluecrop'. With these easy-to-grow plants capable of kicking out up to 6kg of berries per year (worth £80 in supermarkets) its a real no brainer.
Based on an exhaustive review of the most cutting edge scientific research, my new RHS book reveals for the first time the secrets to growing crops for measurablyimproved flavour and nutrition.
Translating geek speak into a set of simple tips & tricks, it shows how anyone can grow maximum flavour with minimum labour.
The best bit? One trial found that lightly cooking blueberries (as happens when you bake a pie) can double their absorbable antioxidant content. Talk about having your pie and eating it.
Still not satisfied? Several trials have found that growing these berries organically (i.e. not bothering with the faff of spraying on fertiliser and insecticide) saw up to a doubling of their content of chemicals known as anthocyanins, which provides them with their purported antioxidant effect.