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'''Blueberries''' are [[flowering plant]]s of the genus ''[[Vaccinium]]'' (a genus which also includes [[cranberry|cranberries]] and [[bilberries]]) with dark-purple berries. Species in the section ''Cyanococcus'' are the most common fruits sold as "blueberries" and are mainly native to North America.<ref>[http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/plymouth/hort/berries/blueberry/bbpage1.html NC State Lecture:Blueberries for local sales and Pick-your-own Operations]</ref> They are usually erect but sometimes [[prostrate shrub|prostrate]] [[shrub]]s varying in size from {{Convert|10|cm|in}} to {{Convert|4|m|in}} tall. In commercial blueberry production, smaller species are known as "lowbush blueberries" (synonymous with "wild") and the larger species, are known as "highbush blueberries". The [[leaf|leaves]] can be either [[deciduous]] or [[evergreen]], [[ovate]] to [[lanceolate]], and {{Convert|1|-|8|cm|in}} long and {{Convert|0.5|-|3.5|cm|in}} broad. The [[flower]]s are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish. The [[fruit]] is a [[epigynous berry|false berry]] {{Convert|5|-|16|mm|in}} diameter with a flared crown at the end; they are pale greenish at first, then reddish-purple, and finally blueish-purple when ripe. They have a sweet taste when mature, with variable acidity. Blueberry bushes typically bear fruit in the middle of the growing season: fruiting times are affected by local conditions such as altitude and latitude, so the height of the crop can vary from May to August depending upon these conditions. ==Cultivation== Blueberries may be cultivated, or they may be picked from semi-wild or wild bushes. In North America, the most common cultivated species is ''V. corymbosum'', the [[Northern highbush blueberry]]. Hybrids of this with other ''Vaccinium'' species adapted to southern U.S. climates are known collectively as Southern highbush blueberries. [[Image:Blueberry plants.jpg|thumb|right|Blueberry flowers]] So-called "wild" (lowbush) blueberries, smaller than cultivated highbush ones, are prized for their intense color. The [[lowbush blueberry]], ''V. angustifolium'', is found from the [[Atlantic provinces]] westward to [[Quebec]] and southward to [[Michigan]] and [[West Virginia]]. In some areas, it produces natural ''blueberry barrens'', where it is the dominant species covering large areas. Several [[First Nations]] communities in [[Ontario]] are involved in harvesting wild blueberries. Lowbush species are fire-tolerant and blueberry production often increases following a [[wildfire|forest fire]] as the plants regenerate rapidly and benefit from removal of competing vegetation. "Wild" has been adopted as a marketing term for harvests of managed native stands of low-bush blueberries. The bushes are not planted or genetically manipulated, but they are pruned or burned over every two years, and pests are "managed".<ref>[http://www.nsac.ns.ca/wildblue/ Wild Blueberry Network Information Centre]</ref> There are numerous highbush [[cultivar]]s of blueberries, each of which have a unique and diverse flavor. The most important blueberry breeding program has been the [[USDA-ARS]] breeding program based at Beltsville, Maryland, and Chatsworth, New Jersey. This program began when [[Frederick Coville]] of the USDA-ARS collaborated with [[Elizabeth Coleman White]] of [[New Jersey]]. In the early part of the 20th Century, White offered wild pickers cash for large-fruited blueberry plants. ''Rubel'', one such wild blueberry cultivar, is the origin of many of the current hybrid cultivars. Rabbiteye Blueberry (''V. virgatum,'' syn. ''V. ashei'') is a southern type of blueberry produced from the Carolinas to the Gulf Coast states. Other important species in North America include ''V. pallidum'', the Hillside or Dryland Blueberry. It is native to the eastern U.S., and common in the Appalachians and the [[Piedmont (United States)|Piedmont]] of the Southeast. Sparkleberry, ''V. arboreum'', is a common wild species on sandy soils in the southeastern U.S. Its fruits are important to wildlife, and the flowers are important to beekeepers. ===Propagation=== ===Pests and diseases=== ==Species== {| | Note: habitat and range summaries are from the Flora of New Brunswick, published in 1986 by Harold R. Hinds. *''[[Lowbush blueberry|Vaccinium angustifolium]]'' (Lowbush Blueberry):acidic barrens, bogs and clearings. Manitoba to Labrador, south to Nova Scotia and in the USA, to Iowa and Virginia *''[[Vaccinium boreale]]'' (Northern Blueberry): Peaty barrens. Quebec and Labrador (rare in New Brunswick), south to New York and Massachusetts. *''[[Vaccinium caesariense]]'' (New Jersey Blueberry) *''[[Northern highbush blueberry|Vaccinium corymbosum]]'' (Northern Highbush Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium darrowii]]'' (Southern Highbush Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium elliottii]]'' (Elliott Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium formosum]]'' (southern blueberry) | *''[[Vaccinium fuscatum]]'' (Black Highbush Blueberry; syn. ''V. atrococcum'') *''[[Vaccinium hirsutum]]'' (Hairy-fruited Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium myrtilloides]] (Sour top, Velvet Leaf, or Canadian Blueberry): clearings, thickets and peat bogs. Northwest Territories (Canada) to Labrador, south to Nova Scotia, and Montana to Virginia. *''[[Vaccinium operium]]'' (cyan-fruited Blueberry) *''[[Canadian blueberry|Vaccinium myrtilloides]]'' (Canadian Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium pallidum]]'' (Dryland Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium simulatum]]'' (Upland Highbush Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium tenellum]]'' (Southern Blueberry) *''[[Rabbiteye blueberry|Vaccinium virgatum]]'' (Rabbiteye Blueberry; syn. ''V. ashei'') |} Some other blue-fruited species of ''Vaccinium:'' *''[[Vaccinium koreanum]]'' *''[[Vaccinium myrsinites]]'' (Evergreen Blueberry) *''[[Vaccinium myrtillus]]'' (Bilberry) ==Gallery== <gallery perrow=5> File:Maturing blueberry.jpg File:Unripe blueberries.jpg Image:Upload.png| photo 1 Image:Upload.png| photo 2 Image:Upload.png| photo 3 </gallery> ==References== <references/> *[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963 <!--- xxxxx *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381 --> <!--- xxxxx *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432 --> <!--- xxxxx *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608 --> ==See also== *[[Blueberry culture]] ==External links== *{{wplink}} {{stub}} __NOTOC__
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