Difference between revisions of "Blueberry"

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{{Taxobox
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{{SPlantbox
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| color = lightgreen
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|familia=Ericaceae
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| name = Blueberry
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|genus=Vaccinium
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| image = Blueberries.jpg
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|taxo_author=Rydb.
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| image_width = 240px
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|common_name=Blueberry
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| image_caption = Blueberry fruit
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|habit=shrub
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| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
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|lifespan=perennial
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| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
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|features=edible, fruit, bees
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| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
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|Temp Metric=°F
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| ordo = [[Ericales]]
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|jumpin=If this plant info box on watering; zones; height; etc. is mostly empty you can click on the edit tab and fill in the blanks!
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| familia = [[Ericaceae]]
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|image=Blueberries.jpg
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| genus = ''[[Vaccinium]]''
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|image_width=240
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| sectio = '''''Cyanococcus'''''
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|image_caption=Blueberry fruit
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| sectio_authority = [[Per Axel Rydberg|Rydb.]]
 
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| subdivision_ranks = Species
 
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| subdivision = See text.
 
 
}}
 
}}
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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 &quot;blueberries&quot; 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 &quot;lowbush blueberries&quot; (synonymous with &quot;wild&quot;) and the larger species, are known as &quot;highbush blueberries&quot;. 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.
  
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'''Blueberries''' are a group of [[flowering plant]]s in the genus ''[[Vaccinium]]'', sect. ''Cyanococcus''. The species are native to [[North America]] and eastern [[Asia]]. They are [[shrub]]s varying in size from 10 cm tall to 4 m tall; the smaller species are known as "lowbush blueberries", and the larger species as "highbush blueberries". The [[leaf|leaves]] can be either [[deciduous]] or [[evergreen]], ovate to lanceolate, and from 1-8 cm long and 0.5-3.5 cm broad. The [[flower]]s are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish.  
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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.
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==Cultivation==
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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.
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[[Image:Blueberry plants.jpg|thumb|right|Blueberry flowers]]
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So-called &quot;wild&quot; (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.
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&quot;Wild&quot; 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 &quot;managed&quot;.<ref>[http://www.nsac.ns.ca/wildblue/ Wild Blueberry Network Information Centre]</ref>
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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.
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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.
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===Propagation===
  
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The [[fruit]] is a [[berry]] 5-16 mm diameter with a flared "crown" at the end; they are pale greenish at first, then reddish-purple, and finally turn blue or dark purple on ripening. They have a sweet taste when mature, with variable acidity. The blueberry season typically runs from May to October, peaking in July.
 
  
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All the species whose [[common name]]s in English include "blueberry" are currently classified in section ''Cyanococcus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''.  Other sections in the genus, native to other parts of the world including [[Europe]], include other wild shrubs producing edible berries such as [[Cranberry|cranberries]], [[Bilberry|bilberries]] and [[Cowberry|cowberries]].  Many of these have blue berries and are very similar in use and taste to blueberries.  Furthermore their names in languages other than English often translate as "blueberry", e.g. [[Scots (language)|Scots]] ''Blaeberry'' and [[Norwegian (language)|Norwegian]] ''Blåbær''.  There is thus considerable scope for confusion.  This page, however, deals only with the plants called "blueberry" in English, i.e. section ''Cyanococcus'' of the genus.
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===Pests and diseases===
  
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Although blueberries are native to North America, they are now grown also in Australia, New Zealand and South American countries[http://www.blueberry.org/blueberries.htm], and are air-shipped as fresh produce to markets around the world. Blueberries are one of the only human foods naturally colored blue.
 
  
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;Species
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==Species==
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*''[[Lowbush blueberry|Vaccinium angustifolium]]'' (Lowbush Blueberry)
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{|
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*''[[Vaccinium boreale]]''  (northern blueberry)
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|
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*''[[Vaccinium caesariense]]''  (New Jersey blueberry)
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Note: habitat and range summaries are from the Flora of New Brunswick, published in 1986 by Harold R. Hinds.
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*''[[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
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*''[[Vaccinium boreale]]''  (Northern Blueberry): Peaty barrens.  Quebec and Labrador (rare in New Brunswick), south to New York and Massachusetts.
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*''[[Vaccinium caesariense]]''  (New Jersey Blueberry)
 
*''[[Northern highbush blueberry|Vaccinium corymbosum]]'' (Northern Highbush Blueberry)
 
*''[[Northern highbush blueberry|Vaccinium corymbosum]]'' (Northern Highbush Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium darrowii]]'' (Southern Highbush Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium darrowii]]'' (Southern Highbush Blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium elliottii]]'' (Elliot Blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium elliottii]]'' (Elliott Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium formosum]]''  (southern blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium formosum]]''  (southern blueberry)
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|
 
*''[[Vaccinium fuscatum]]'' (Black Highbush Blueberry; syn. ''V. atrococcum'')
 
*''[[Vaccinium fuscatum]]'' (Black Highbush Blueberry; syn. ''V. atrococcum'')
 
*''[[Vaccinium hirsutum]]'' (Hairy-fruited Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium hirsutum]]'' (Hairy-fruited Blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium koreanum]]''
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*''[[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.
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*''[[Vaccinium myrsinites]]'' (Evergreen Blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium operium]]'' (cyan-fruited Blueberry)
 
*''[[Canadian blueberry|Vaccinium myrtilloides]]'' (Canadian Blueberry)
 
*''[[Canadian blueberry|Vaccinium myrtilloides]]'' (Canadian Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium pallidum]]'' (Dryland Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium pallidum]]'' (Dryland Blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium simulatum]]''  (upland highbush blueberry)
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*''[[Vaccinium simulatum]]''  (Upland Highbush Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium tenellum]]'' (Southern Blueberry)
 
*''[[Vaccinium tenellum]]'' (Southern Blueberry)
 
*''[[Rabbiteye blueberry|Vaccinium virgatum]]'' (Rabbiteye Blueberry; syn. ''V. ashei'')
 
*''[[Rabbiteye blueberry|Vaccinium virgatum]]'' (Rabbiteye Blueberry; syn. ''V. ashei'')
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|}
  
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==Cultivation==
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Some other blue-fruited species of ''Vaccinium:''
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Blueberries are both cultivated and picked wild. 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.
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*''[[Vaccinium koreanum]]''
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*''[[Vaccinium myrsinites]]'' (Evergreen Blueberry)
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[[Image:Blueberry plants.jpg|thumb|left|Blueberry flowers]]
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*''[[Vaccinium myrtillus]]'' (Bilberry)
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Wild blueberries, smaller and much more expensive than cultivated ones, are prized for their intense flavour and color. The '''Lowbush Blueberry''', ''V. angustifolium'', is found from [[Newfoundland]] westward and southward to [[Michigan]] and [[West Virginia]]. In some areas it
 
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produces natural ''blueberry barrens'', where it is practically the only species covering large areas. Several [[First Nations]] communities in [[Ontario]] are involved in harvesting wild blueberries. Low bush 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.
 
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There are numerous highbush [[cultivar]]s of blueberries, each of which have a unique and diverse flavour. One of the first "wild" cultivars of blueberries is the 'Rubel'. During the [[Great Depression]], farmers were offered $20 for the best wild blueberry bushes they could find. 'Rubel' is one such wild blueberry cultivar and is the origin of many of the current hybrid cultivars.
 
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'''Rabbiteye Blueberry''' (''V. virgatum'') is a southern type of blueberry produced from the Carolinas to the Gulf Coast states.
 
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Other important species in North America include ''V. pallidum'', the '''Hillside''' or '''Dryland Blueberry'''. It is native to the eastern U.S., but 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 fruit are important to wildlife, and the flowers important to beekeepers.
 
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==Growing areas==
 
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[[Image:Norwegian blueberries.jpg|thumb|250px|Wild blueberries collected in [[Norway]].]]
 
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[[Maine]] produces 25% of all blueberries in North America, making it the largest producer in the world. Maine's 24,291 hectares (FAO figures) [60,023 acres] of blueberry were propagated from native plants that occur naturally in the understorey of its coastal forests. The Maine crop requires about 50,000 [[beehive (beekeeping)|beehives]] for [[pollination]], with most of the hives being trucked in from other states for that purpose.
 
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[[Quebec]] has largest quantity of wild blueberry production, coming especially from the regions of [[Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean]] and [[Côte-Nord]] Which is 40% of [[Quebec]] blueberries provincial production. [[Quebec]] were also producing an additionnal of 18 717 hectares in farms in 2001 and now increasing this number by 10 000 hectares.
 
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[[Michigan]], [[New York]], [[New Jersey]] and [[North Carolina]] are large producers of Highbush Blueberries.
 
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[[Oregon]], [[Washington]] and [[British Columbia]] are becoming major producers of blueberries. [[California]] is rapidly increasing plantings largely through the cultivation of Southern Highbush varieties originating largely from the University of Florida.  Southern Highbush is now also cultivated in the Mediterranean regions of Europe. 
 
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[[Nova Scotia]] is also a producer of blueberries, which grow naturally in the Province.  The town of [[Oxford, Nova Scotia]] is known as the Wild Blueberry Capital of Canada.  The blueberry is also the Provincial Berry of the Province of [[Nova Scotia]].
 
  
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Highbush blueberries were first introduced to Germany and the Netherlands in the 1930s and have since spread to Poland and elsewhere on the continent.(Nauman, 1993)
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==Gallery==
  
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"[M]any growers in France, Austria, and Italy realised too that it pays to cultivate highbush blueberries, and that good economic gain can be obtained," according to an industry researcher. "Even in Belgium and Norway some very promising trials with special methods of blueberry cultivation resulted in a limited commercial production which is very successful. ... Except in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain, a blueberry industry is developing in all regions where the production is possible due to the climatic and edaphic conditions ..." (Nauman, 1993).
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<gallery perrow=5>
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File:Maturing blueberry.jpg
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In the Southern hemisphere, [[Chile]], [[Argentina]], [[New Zealand]], and [[Australia]] now export blueberries. [[South Africa]] exports them to Europe.
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File:Unripe blueberries.jpg
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Image:Upload.png| photo 1
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Blueberries were first introduced to Australia in the 1950s, but the effort was unsuccessful. "In the early 1970's David Jones from the Victorian Department of Agriculture imported seed from the U.S. and a selection trial was started. This work was continued by Ridley Bell" who imported more American varieties. In the mid-1970s the Australian Blueberry Growers Association (ABGA) was formed. (Clayton-Greene)
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Image:Upload.png| photo 2
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Image:Upload.png| photo 3
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By the early 1980s, the blueberry industry was started in New Zealand and is still growing.(BNZ, n.d)
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</gallery>
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The industry is even newer in Argentina: "Argentine blueberry production has increased over the last three years with planted area up to 400 percent," according to a 2005 report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. But that increase comes from a tiny base of 400 hectares in 2001 (to 1,600 hectares in 2004). The industry is new in the country and farmers are still learning the business. "Argentine blueberry production has thrived in three different regions: the province of Entre Rios in Northeastern Argentina, the province of Buenos Aires, near the country’s capital city Buenos Aires, and the southern Patagonian valleys," according to the report.(Gain, 2005)
 
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==Growing seasons==
 
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Blueberry production in North America typically starts in mid-May (in Florida) and ends in September, when some fruit is held over in controlled-atmosphere storage in Oregon, Washington and Canada.(Gaskell, 2006).
 
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Sources give different periods for the growing season in the southern hemisphere. According to the University of California Extension Service, Chile, New Zealand and Argentina begin harvesting in the winter and continue till mid-March, when Chilean blueberries are held over in controlled-atmosphere storage for about six weeks. "As a result, blueberries reach annual peak prices in mid-April."(Gaskell, 2006)
 
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In Chile, San Jose Farms, which says (according to its Web site) that it is one of the oldest blueberry producers in the country (it started in the early 1990s), states that its harvest season starts in November and continues through March. (San Jose, n.d.)
 
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In Argentina: "The marketing year (MY) for blueberries begins in September and ends in February," according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report. (Gain, 2005)
 
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==Uses==
 
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Blueberries are used in [[Jelly|jellies]], [[jam]]s, and [[pie]]s, baked into [[muffins]], and are an ingredient of many other snacks and delicacies. Some baked products incorporate artificial blueberries.
 
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[[Image:Maturing blueberry.jpg|thumb|right|A maturing Polaris blueberry (vaccinium 'Polaris')]]
 
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'''Blueberry jam''' is a [[jam]] made out of blueberries, [[sugar]] and water, and fruit pectin. Commercial jams often contain preservatives such as [[citric acid]]. Premium artisanal blueberry jam is produced in [[Canada]] and the [[United States]] from wild blueberries, which are smaller and more difficult to harvest but more intensely flavoured than cultivated blueberries. Most production is in [[Maine]], northwestern [[Ontario]], and in the [[Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean]] region of [[Quebec]].
 
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In the last few years, '''blueberry juice''' has entered the market and is now considered a whole new category of juice in the beverage aisle. The last new juice category that was successfully introduced was cranberry juice, over 60 years ago.  Blueberry juice brands include [[TrueBlue]], POM, and R.W. Knudsen Family.
 
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==Health==
 
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Blueberries, especially wild species, contain [[antioxidant]]s which have been found to reduce the risks of some [[cancer]]s. Researchers in [[Prince Edward Island]] have shown that the [[tannin]]s in blueberries are very active at lowering a protein involved in metastasis of cancer, at least in isolated cells (Matchett and others, 2005). At the 2004 International Conference on [[Longevity]], a group of researchers released details of a study that suggests certain compounds found in blueberries (and some similar fruits, including [[Cranberry|cranberries]]) have a significant impact in reducing the degradation of brain function, as in [[Alzheimer's Disease]] and other conditions ([http://www.alzheimers.org/nianews/nianews23.html], [http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/natint/stories/s1059896.htm]). Feeding blueberries to animals lowers stroke damage (Sweeney).  Research at Rutgers http://aesop.rutgers.edu/~bluecran/medicinalgeneralinfopage.htm] has also shown that blueberries may help prevent urinary tract infections. Additional studies also found that blueberries were better at lowering cholesterol and lipid levels in the blood, which help alleviate and even reverse signs and symptoms of heart disease. [[Ciprofibrate]] was found to be inferior to the blueberries in lowering cholesterol. The signs point to [[pterostilbene]], which signal cells to break down lipids and cholesterol.[http://www.webmd.com/content/article/93/102127.htm] All of these studies were conducted using high bush, hybrid cultivars of blueberries. A more recent study {{Fact|date=February 2007}} has tentatively found that anti-oxidants may be higher in lowbush blueberries than in highbush blueberries. The study is flawed in that it does not specify which of the many unique and diverse cultivars of high bush blueberries were used for the comparison or even where the blueberries were grown. The soil where the blueberries were grown impacts the composition of the minerals present.
 
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140 grams of fresh blueberries contain 3 g of [[Dietary fiber|fibre]] [http://www.suffolkblues.co.uk/health.html]. Additionally blueberries are high in [[manganese]] (Mn) as well as [[vitamin k]] and have a very low [[glycemic load]] (3) in a single 155g serving, making it an ideal food for diabetics. [http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts-C00001-01c20Tt.html]
 
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
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{{commons|Vaccinium_corymbosum|Vaccinium_corymbosum}}
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<references/>
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*[[Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture]], by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
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<!--- xxxxx  *Flora: The Gardener's Bible, by Sean Hogan. Global Book Publishing, 2003. ISBN 0881925381  -->
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<!--- xxxxx  *American Horticultural Society: A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants, by Christopher Brickell, Judith D. Zuk. 1996. ISBN 0789419432  -->
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<!--- xxxxx  *Sunset National Garden Book. Sunset Books, Inc., 1997. ISBN 0376038608  -->
  
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*BNZ, n.d: "Blueberries New Zealand Inc" Web page[http://www.blueberriesnz.co.nz/index.htm] at the site of the organization of the same name, accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]].
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==See also==
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*[[Blueberry culture]]
  
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*Clayton-Greene, K.: Web page titled "THE BLUEBERRY INDUSTRY IN AUSTRALIA: AN OVERVIEW" a summary of an article[http://www.actahort.org/books/241/241_12.htm] at the Web site for the International Society for Horticultural Science. The article appears to have been written in the 1990s, accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]].
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==External links==
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*{{wplink}}
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*Gain, 2005: "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service: GAIN Report: Global Agriculture Information Network"[http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:flZP2TbGdiQJ:www.fas.usda.gov/gainfiles/200501/146118470.doc+%22African+blueberries%22&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=3&ie=UTF-8], [[January 12]], [[2005]], accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]]</ref>
 
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*Gaskell, Mark. "Strategies for Off-Season Blueberry Production on Coastal California Small Farms," an article[http://72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:rUQNSVQyrJ0J:cesantabarbara.ucdavis.edu/newsletterfiles/Central_Coast_Agriculture_Highlights8364.pdf+%22blueberry+production%22+%22Chile%22&hl=en&gl=us&ct=clnk&cd=2&ie=UTF-8] in "Central Coast Agriculture Highlights" a newsletter published by the University of California Cooperative Extension, February 2006 issue, page 2, accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]].
 
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*Nauman, W.D. Web page[http://www.actahort.org/books/346/346_6.htm] titled "OVERVIEW OF THE VACCINIUM INDUSTRY IN WESTERN EUROPE," a summary of an article by W.D. Naumann presented at the Fifth International Symposium on Vaccinium Culture and published in July 1993, from the Web site of the International Society for Horticultural Science, accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]].
 
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*San Jose, n.d.: San Jose Farms Web site, "Products: Blueberries" Web page[http://www.sanjosefarms.com/fruits1.php], accessed [[August 24]], [[2006]]</ref>
 
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*Sweeney M.I., Kalt W., MacKinnon S.L., Ashby J. and Gottschall-Pass K.T.  Feeding of diets enriched in lowbush blueberries (Vaccinium angustifolium) for six weeks decreases stroke severity in rats. Nutritional Neuroscience  5: 427-431, 2002.
 
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*Matchett, M.D., MacKinnon, S.L., Sweeney, M.I., Gottschall-Pass, K.T., and Hurta, R.A.R. Blueberry flavonoids inhibit matrix metalloproteinase activity in DU145 human prostate cancer cells.  Biochem Cell Biol.  83: 637-643, 2005.
 
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*University of California Cooperative Extension (2006). [http://cesantabarbara.ucdavis.edu/newsletterfiles/Central_Coast_Agriculture_Highlights8364.pdf ''Strategies for Off-Season Blueberry Production on Coastal California Small Farms''] (pdf file) an article by Mark Gaskell in ''Central Coast Agriculture Highlights'' newsletter. Accessed [[August 24]] [[2006]].
 
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* Joseph, J.A., Shukitt-Hale B., Denisova, N.A. Bielinksi D., Martin, A., McEwen, J.J., & Bickford, P.C., 1999. Reversals of age-related declines in neuronal signal transduction, cognitive, and motor behavioral deficits with blueberry, spinach, or strawberry dietary supplementation. ''Journal of Neuroscience'' 19 (18): 8114–8121.
 
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*{{cite book | author=Sumner, Judith | title=American Household Botany: A History of Useful Plants, 1620-1900 | publisher=Timber Press | year=2004 | id=ISBN 0-88192-652-3 | pages=125}} [http://books.google.com/books?ie=UTF-8&hl=en&id=ZFZU5mfn2KEC&dq=blueberries+cornmeal&prev=http://books.google.com/books%3Fq%3Dblueberries%2Bcornmeal&lpg=PA125&pg=PA125&sig=IBNVO5jFcE8r3UUnt3LNWhrl-qQ Google books link]
 
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* [http://www.fao.org/AG/AGP/AGPS/C-CAB/Castudies/pdf/6-022.pdf Wild blueberry culture in Maine] ([[FAO]])
 
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*[http://www.rce.rutgers.edu/pubs/blueberrybulletin/ "The Blueberry Bulletin" newsletter (New Jersey)]
 
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* [http://www.commission-foret.qc.ca/memoires/doc_283_pro_Bleuets.pdf Gestion de la forêt publique québécoise]
 
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;Industry associations
 
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*[http://www.nswildblueberries.com '''Nova Scotia''' Wild Blueberry Producers Association]
 
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*[http://www.blueberry.org/ '''US''' Highbush Blueberry Council]
 
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*[http://www.blueberries.com/ '''Michigan''' Blueberry Growers Association]
 
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*[http://www.bcblueberry.com/ '''British Columbia''' Blueberry Council]
 
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*[http://www.floridablueberrygrowers.com/ '''Florida''' Blueberry Growers Association]
 
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*[http://www.abga.com.au/index.htm '''Australian''' Blueberry Growers Association]
 
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*[http://www.blueberriesnz.co.nz/ Blueberries '''New Zealand''' Inc. industry assiciation]
 
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==See also==
 
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[[Elizabeth Coleman White]]
 
  
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[[Category:Ericaceae]]
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{{stub}}
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[[Category:Fruit]]
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__NOTOC__

Latest revision as of 20:55, 10 February 2010


Blueberry fruit


Plant Characteristics
Habit   shrub

Lifespan: ⌛ perennial
Cultivation
Features: ✓ edible, fruit, bees
Scientific Names

Ericaceae >

Vaccinium >

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Blueberries are flowering plants of the genus Vaccinium (a genus which also includes 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.[1] They are usually erect but sometimes prostrate shrubs varying in size from 10 cm in to 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 leaves can be either deciduous or evergreen, ovate to lanceolate, and 1 - 8 cm long and 0.5 - 3.5 cm broad. The flowers are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish.

The fruit is a false berry 5 - 16 mm 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.

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 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".[2]

There are numerous highbush cultivars 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 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.

Some other blue-fruited species of Vaccinium:

Gallery

  • Maturing blueberry.jpg
  • Unripe blueberries.jpg

  • photo 1

  • photo 2

  • photo 3

References

  1. ↑ NC State Lecture:Blueberries for local sales and Pick-your-own Operations
  2. ↑ Wild Blueberry Network Information Centre

See also

External links


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