Low-bush blueberry
Vaccinium angustifolium

Family: Ericaceae

What it is like

A small shrub. It grows 30 cm high. It has wiry, twiggy shoots. It forms a low spreading mat with underground stems or rhizomes up to 10 m long. It puts out uprights from nodes on these stems. The plants become dormant during winter. The leaves are narrow and sword shaped. They are 1.3-3 cm long. They often have teeth along the edge. They turn red in the autumn. The flowers are white in short compact racemes. They are bell shaped. They have a reddish streak. The flowers are 5 mm long. The fruit are large bluish black berries. They vary in colour and size. They can be 2-12 mm across. Several named cultivated varieties occur.

The berries are high in antioxidants. They have health benefits.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. They grow in open bogs and on exposed rocky soils and in dry peat soil. It can grow with a soil pH of 2.8-6.0. It can tolerate a wide range of temperatures. A snow covering helps protect the plant buds from heavy frost. It suits hardiness zones 2-8.

Countries/locations it is found in

Canada, North America, USA

How it is used for food

The fruit can be eaten raw. The berries are also cooked by boiling and canned. They are used for muffins, cookies, pies and other products. They can be dried.

It is grown commercially in Canada and the USA.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants grow naturally from seed. Traditionally areas with low-bush blueberries were burnt to reduce weeds and competing vegetation. The old dormant plants are pruned or burnt. Hay is spread over rough or rocky land to make burning easier. Plants can be also propagated by selecting an upright shoot from a rhizome.

The small berries are often picked using a dustpan like rake with fine teeth and this is pulled through the bushes. The fruit need to be harvested in fine weather when dry. Yields of 5,000 kg per hectare are possible.

Its other names

Local names

Late sweet blueberry, Low sweet blueberry, Sweethurts, Upland lowbush blueberry

Synonyms

Vaccinium angustifolium var. hypolasium Fernald; Vaccinium angustifolium var. laevifolium House; Vaccinium angustifolium var. nigrum (A. W. Wood) Dole; Vaccinium brittonii Porter ex C. Bicknell; Vaccinium lamarckii Camp; Vaccinium pensylvanicum Lam., nom. illeg.; Vaccinium pensylvanicum var. nigrum A. W. Wood;