Horticulturalists are celebrating after breeding a new species of blueberry set to transform muffins and pies due to its unusual pink colour.
The type of ‘pinkberry’ named ‘Pink Lemonade’ is so called because of its bright fuschia colour, a far cry from the usual deep blue shade of the small superfruit.
The crop is exactly the same shape and size of a blueberry but tastes much sweeter than its slightly sour cousin.
The pinkberries are ideal for eating raw, sprinkling on cereal, mixing into cake mix and for using in drinks.
An independent fruit grower has spent the last 20 years painstakingly breeding pinkberries through cross-pollination and selected the Pink Lemonade variety due to its sweet taste.
He crossed rabbiteye blueberry - Vaccinium Ashei in Latin - and the normal highbush blueberry that we often see to create the unusually bright crop.
Now, the bushes that have been developed in the U.S. are being imported to the UK for the first time via Switzerland and are being sold through Devon-based Suttons Seeds for £14.99.
The bushes' pointed leaves turn bright orange in autumn and produce pale pink bell-shaped flowers, which grow into translucent white berries in the spring.
The fruits develop a green shade and eventually turn bright pink when they mature in August and September.
Francijn Suermondt for Suttons Seeds, said: 'In the UK we don’t have anything as bright as this so it’s lovely, it’s so pretty and children will especially like it.
'They are perfect for patios and balconies and can be grown exactly like blueberries.
'It is best to plant the pinkberry bush next to other pinkberry bushes or blueberries, as this will make it grow more fruit due to pollination.
'As with most fruit fresh is best, but they can be used in muffins or pies and cooked exactly how you would cook a blueberry, but they have double the amount of sweetness.'
The pinkberries come potted in 1.3 litre tubs and will grow to a height of 4.9ft with a 2.9ft spread.
Each bush will grow about 3lbs of fruit every year.
