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Vaccinium angustifolium — common lowbush blueberry

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Facts

Common lowbush blueberry is fire-tolerant and rhizomatous, and a very common colonizer of open ground. Its small (1.5-3.2 cm or 0.8-1.5 inch long) leaves have margins with tiny, regularly spaced serrations. The white, bell-shaped flowers are 0.4-0.8 cm (0.2-0.4 inches) long. Many blueberry (Vaccinium) species interbreed, making definitive identification a challenge. Low-bush blueberry is the leading source of commercial blueberries in North America. The edible berries are rich in vitamin C and sugars. Bears and other animals also eat the fruits. Because it can tolerate challenging soils, even mine tailings, lowbush blueberry is occasionally used to revegetate disturbed sites. Blueberries also make excellent native shrub plantings because of their tolerance, easy growth and berry production. Blueberries require bees for pollination, but intensive use of pesticides in agricultural barrens has reduced natural pollinator density.

Habitat

Alpine or subalpine zones, cliffs, balds, or ledges, grassland, meadows and fields, mountain summits and plateaus, ridges or ledges, woodlands

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

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Characteristics

Habitat
terrestrial
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
Growth form
the plant is a shrub (i.e., a woody plant with several stems growing from the base)
Leaf type
the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
Leaves per node
there is one leaf per node along the stem
Leaf blade edges
the edge of the leaf blade has teeth
Leaf duration
the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
armature on plant
the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns
Leaf blade length
15–32 mm
Leaf blade width
5–20 mm
Leaf stalk
the leaves have leaf stalks
Fruit type (general)
the fruit is fleshy
Bark texture
the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
Twig winter color
green
Bud scale number
there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
Show all characteristics

  • Buds or leaf scars

    Bud scale number
    there are three or more scales on the winter bud, and they overlap like shingles, with one edge covered and the other edge exposed
    Bud scar shape (Fraxinus)
    NA
    Collateral buds
    there are no collateral buds on the sides of the branches
    Leaf scar arrangement
    there is one leaf scar per node on the stem or twig
    Superposed buds
    there are no superposed buds on the branch
    Winter bud scale hairs
    the winter bud scales have no hairs on them
    Winter bud scales
    the winter bud is perulate (partially or completely covered with one or more scales)
    Winter bud shape
    the winter buds are ovoid (egg-shaped)
    Winter bud stalks
    the winter buds have no stalks

  • Flowers

    Carpels fused
    the carpels are fused to one another
    Enlarged sterile flowers
    there are no enlarged sterile flowers on the plant
    Flower appearance
    the flowers appear at the same time as the leaves
    Flower petal color
    • pink
    • white
    Flower symmetry
    there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)
    Hairs on ovary (Amelanchier)
    NA
    Hypanthium present
    the flower does not have a hypanthium
    Inflorescence hairs
    there are no hairs on the inflorescence
    Inflorescence position
    • the inflorescences grow on older branches
    • the inflorescences grow on the twigs
    Inflorescence type
    the inflorescence is a raceme (a long unbranched stem with stalked flowers growing along it)
    Number of pistils
    1
    Ovary position
    the ovary is below the point of petal and/or sepal attachment
    Petal and sepal arrangement
    the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures
    Petal appearance
    the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)
    Petal fusion
    the perianth parts are fused to form a tube, cup, or bell shape
    Sepal appearance
    the sepals resemble leaves in color and texture
    Sepal cilia (Ilex)
    NA
    Sepal tip glands
    there are no glands at the tips of the sepal lobes
    Sepals fused only to sepals
    the sepals are fused to each other (not other flower parts), at least near their bases
    Stamen number
    8
    Stamen position relative to petals
    NA
    Stamens fused
    the stamens are not fused to one another

  • Fruits or seeds

    Berry color
    • black
    • blue
    • white
    Fruit tissue origin
    there are no flower parts that form part of the fruit
    Fruit type (general)
    the fruit is fleshy
    Fruit type (specific)
    the fruit is a berry (fleshy, with the wall enclosing one or more sections, with two or more seeds)
    Nut with spines (Fagaceae)
    NA
    Wings on fruit
    there are no wings on the fruit

  • Glands or sap

    Sap color
    the sap is clear and watery
    Stalked glands on fruit (Rosa)
    NA

  • Growth form

    Growth form
    the plant is a shrub (i.e., a woody plant with several stems growing from the base)

  • Leaves

    Hairs on underside of leaf blade
    • the underside of the leaf has hairs on it
    • the underside of the leaf has no hairs
    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Leaf blade base shape
    • the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    • the base of the leaf blade is rounded
    Leaf blade base symmetry
    the leaf blade base is symmetrical
    Leaf blade bloom
    • the underside of the leaf has no noticeable bloom
    • there is a noticeable powdery or waxy bloom on the underside of the leaf
    Leaf blade edges
    the edge of the leaf blade has teeth
    Leaf blade edges (Acer)
    NA
    Leaf blade flatness
    the leaf is flat (planar) at the edges
    Leaf blade hairs
    the hairs on the leaf blade are different from the choices given
    Leaf blade length
    15–32 mm
    Leaf blade scales
    there are no scales on the leaf blades
    Leaf blade shape
    the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    Leaf blade texture
    the leaf blade is herbaceous (has a leafy texture)
    Leaf blade translucent dots
    there are no translucent dots on the leaf blade
    Leaf blade vein pattern
    the main veins of the leaf blade are pinnate (the secondary veins branch off at intervals from the main central vein) and non-arcuate (not arched towards the leaf tip)
    Leaf blade veins
    the leaf blade has one main vein running from the base toward the tip
    Leaf blade width
    5–20 mm
    Leaf duration
    the leaves drop off in winter (or they wither but persist on the plant)
    Leaf form
    the plant is broad-leaved (with broadly flattened leaf blades)
    Leaf lobe tips (Quercus)
    NA
    Leaf midrib glands
    the midrib of the leaf blade lacks glands on the upper surface
    Leaf stalk
    the leaves have leaf stalks
    Leaf stalk attachment to leaf
    the petiole attaches at the basal margin of the leaf blade
    Leaf stalk nectaries
    there are no nectaries on the leaf stalk
    Leaf stalk shape
    the leaf stalk is not flattened
    Leaf teeth
    • the leaf blade margin has teeth, which themselves have smaller teeth on them
    • the leaf blade margin is serrate (with forward-pointing) or dentate (with outward-pointing) with medium-sized to coarse teeth
    Leaf teeth hairs (Carya)
    NA
    Leaf type
    the leaf blade is simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
    Leaves per node
    there is one leaf per node along the stem
    Specific leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
    Stipules
    there are no stipules on the plant, or they fall off as the leaf expands

  • Place

    Habitat
    terrestrial
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
    Specific habitat
    • alpine or subalpine zones
    • cliffs, balds, or ledges
    • grasslands
    • meadows or fields
    • mountain summits and plateaus
    • ridges or ledges
    • woodlands

  • Scent

    Plant odor
    the plant does not have much of an odor, or it has an unpleasant or repellant odor

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Aerial roots
    the plant has no aerial roots
    Bark texture
    the bark of an adult plant is thin and smooth
    Branch brittleness (willows only)
    NA
    Branch cross-section
    the branch is circular in cross-section, or it has five or more sides, so that there are no sharp angles
    First-year cane (Rubus)
    NA
    Lenticels on twigs
    there are clearly lenticels on the twigs
    Pith shape
    the outline of the pith in a twig is roughly round
    Short shoots
    there are no peg- or knob-like shoots present
    Twig bloom
    there is no bloom on the twig
    Twig hairs
    the twigs have few or no hairs on them
    Twig papillae (Vaccinium species only)
    the twigs have papillae on them
    Twig scales
    there are no scales on the twig surface
    Twig winter color
    green
    Wings on branch
    the branch does not have wings on it
    armature on plant
    the plant does not have spines, prickles, or thorns

Wetland status

Occurs most often in non-wetlands, but rarely in wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: FACU-)

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
present
Massachusetts
present
New Hampshire
present
Rhode Island
present
Vermont
present

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

Maine
unranked (S-rank: SNR)
Massachusetts
widespread (S-rank: S5)

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

1.  Vaccinium angustifolium Ait. N

common lowbush blueberry. Vaccinium angustifolium Ait. var. hypolasium Fern.; 
 V. angustifolium Ait. var. laevifolium House; V. angustifolium Ait. var. nigrum (Wood) Dole; 
 V. nigrum (Wood) Britt. • CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT; nearly throughout. Dry-mesic to mesic 
fields, open slopes, woodlands, clearings, ridges, balds, headlands, and mountain summits. 
This species displays variation in fruit and leaf blade characteristics, and several different 
forms are known to occur within New England. Some of these forms, including that with glaucous leaf blades and black, non-glaucous fruits, appear very distinct in the field but 
are not worthy of recognition (e.g., I have observed ramets of this form growing within 
the same colony of plants as the typical form with non-glaucous leaf blades and blue, glaucous fruits). Forms with white fruits, narrow-leaf blades, and pubescent leaf blades 
are also known (the last may represent hybrids with Vaccinium myrtilloides).

1×5. Vaccinium angustifolium × Vaccinium corymbosum → Vaccinium ×‌atlanticum Bickn. is a rare blueberry hybrid known from MA, ME, NH. It most resembles plants of V. corymbosum, given its non-colonial habit, but typically is shorter than 1 m at maturity. It is further characterized by leaf blades (25–) 35–65 mm long and corollas (6.5–) 7–9.5 mm long (vs. leaf blades (10–) 15–32 (–41) mm long and corollas 4–6 mm long in V. angustifolium and leaf blades (30–) 38–80 mm long and corollas 5–10 mm long in V. corymbosum). Though F₁ plants do show intermediacy between the two parental taxa, later generation plants tend to become more similar to V. corymbosum (Sam Vander Kloet, personal communication).

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Vaccinium myrtilloides:
leaf blades without marginal teeth and evidently hairy (vs. V. angustifolium, with leaf blades with tiny marginal teeth and without hairs or with sparse hairs).
Vaccinium boreale:
leaf blades 8–21 x 2–6 mm, usually narrow-elliptic, corolla 3–4 mm long, and berries 3–5 mm in diameter (vs. V. angustifolium, with leaf blades 14-41 x 6–20 mm, narrow-elliptic to broad-elliptic or ovate, corolla 4–6 mm long, and berries mostly 4–9 mm in diameter).

Synonyms

  • Vaccinium angustifolium var. hypolasium Fern.
  • Vaccinium angustifolium var. laevifolium House
  • Vaccinium angustifolium var. nigrum (Wood) Dole
  • Vaccinium nigrum (Wood) Britt.

Family

Ericaceae

Genus

Vaccinium