Vaccinium angustifolium (Lowbush blueberry)

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Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton

Lowbush blueberry, blueberry

Blueberries grow practically everywhere in Maine, where I grew up. They like acid, sandy soils. While vacationing at our camp on Sebago Lake each summer, we collected blueberries at Bradbury Mountain and other locations. Some of them even made it back down the mountain, to become blueberry pie, blueberry pancakes, or blueberry muffins—delightful!

Plants: Rarely over 1′ (30 cm) in height, though they can reach up to 2½′ (76 cm) if sheltered.

Leaves: A glossy blue-green color in the summer. In the fall, they turn reddish-purple.

Flowers: White, ⅛–3/16″ (4–6 mm) long, shaped like tiny bells.

Fruits: Wild blueberries are much smaller than their cultivated cousins, about ⅛–¼″ (3.2–6.3 mm) inch in diameter. They are also more flavorful, not just more intense but somehow sweeter. They are dark blue.

Habitats: Sandy, acidic soils such as pine barrens or woodland openings, in full or dappled light.

This Vaccinium comparision chart also includes a couple of similar-appearing species that are not Vaccinium.

Edibility: Scrumptious, raw or cooked.

Online References:

Wikipedia

Plants for a Future

Illinois Wildflowers

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center

Flora of North America

Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton var. hypolasium Fernald
Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton var. laevifolium House
Vaccinium angustifolium Aiton var. nigrum (Alph. Wood) Dole
Vaccinium brittonii Porter ex E.P. Bicknell
Vaccinium lamarckii Camp
Vaccinium nigrum (Alph. Wood) Britton

5/12/2016 · Wildlife Pond Trail, Beaver Broo, Hollis, New Hampshire

7/2/2015 · Bemis Rd., Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 16 cm)

5/9/2021 · Mitchell Field, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 6 × 4½″ (15 × 12 cm)

4/24/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 4″ (13 × 9.9 cm)

5/12/2007 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts

6/26/2024 · Morse Mountain, Phippsburg, Maine · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm)

5/9/2021 · Mitchell Field, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 5″ (10 × 13 cm)

5/12/2016 · Wildlife Pond Trail, Beaver Broo, Hollis, New Hampshire

5/3/2025 · Merritt Mountain, Phippsburg, Maine · ≈ 4½ × 4″ (11 × 10 cm)

5/12/2007 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts

9/29/2010 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 6″ (17 × 14 cm)

5/15/2015 · Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 7″ (18 × 16 cm)

5/12/2007 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, Massachusetts

8/13/2017 · Burges Pond, Westford, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)

8/13/2017 · Burges Pond, Westford, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 5″ (17 × 13 cm)

5/15/2015 · Willard Brook State Park, Ashby, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 5″ (15 × 12 cm)

5/7/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 4 × 5″ (11 × 13 cm)

8/13/2017 · Burges Pond, Westford, Massachusetts · ≈ 4 × 3½″ (10 × 9.2 cm)

5/14/2015 · Silver Lake, Hollis, New Hampshire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm)

8/13/2017 · Burges Pond, Westford, Massachusetts · ≈ 3½ × 3½″ (9.5 × 8.7 cm)

5/12/2016 · Wildlife Pond Trail, Beaver Broo, Hollis, New Hampshire

5/14/2015 · Silver Lake, Hollis, New Hampshire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm)

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin)
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Ericales	Tea, persimmon, blueberry, Brazil nut, azalea, many others
Family	Ericaceae	Heath or heather family
Genus	Vaccinium	Ancient Latin name for billberry
Species	angustifolium	Latin for “Narrow leaf”

About plant names...

Range: Zones 2-6:

About this map...

Vaccinium angustifolium description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.