VACCIXIUM 



VACCINIUM 



3423 



3893. Vaccinium pennsylvanicum. 

 Low blueberry. 



nearly cylindrical, M~/4 m - l n g> white or pink: bracts 

 small, deciduous: berry black, almost or quite destitute 

 of bloom. Swamps, S. Va. to Fla. and La. B.M. 3522. 

 B.R. 302 (as V. fuscatum). The distinction between 

 this species and V. corymbosum is very slight. It is 

 probable that, possibly excepting var. tenettum, this is 



only a southern form 

 of V. corymbosum and 

 should be reduced to 

 varietal rank. 



Var. tenellum, Gray 

 (V. tenettum, Ait.). 

 A low form, mostly less 

 than 2 ft. high, with 

 smaller Ivs. and nearly 

 white fls. in short close 

 clusters. S.Va.toArk., 

 Fla,., and Ala. 



7. corymbosum, 

 Linn. HIGH-BUSH 

 BLUEBERRY. SWAMP 

 BLUEBERRY. Fig. 3892. 

 A tall handsome bushv 

 shrub, 4-12 ft. high, 

 with yellowish green 

 warty branchlets: Ivs. 

 large, 1J4~3 in. long, 

 ovate-oblong to ellip- 

 tical, acutish, glabrous, 

 hah* grown at flower- 

 ing time: corolla long- 

 cylindrical, K - Hp. 

 long, white: berries 

 blue-black, of excellent 

 flavor. Moist woods or 

 bogs, N. E. N. Amer. 

 Em. 2:454. Amer. 

 Agric. 1886:364. Exceedingly variable, and many 

 forms unite the several varieties. Apparently many 

 natural hybrids occur between this and other species, 

 rendering the taxonomy very difficult. V. corymbosum 

 is one of the most valuable species both for fr. and as 

 an ornamental shrub. It thrives in peaty acid soil. 



Var. amdenum. Gray (V. amcenum, Ait.?). A form 

 with Ivs. bristly ciliate or serrulate, bright green on both 

 sides, shining above. "Mainly in the Middle Atlantic 

 states." B.R. 400. B.M. 3433 (as V. corymbosum). 

 Probably of hybrid origin. 



Var. pallidum, Gray (V. pallidum, Ait. V. aUnflbrum, 

 Hook. V. Constdblari, Gray). A pale and glaucous or 

 glaucescent form with or without some pubescence: 

 plant generally low, 24 ft. high: Ivs. ciliate-serrulate. 

 Common in mountainous regions southward. B.M. 

 3428. Probably a distinct species. 



Var. fuscatum, Gray (V. fuscatum, Ait.). A tall form 

 with the mature entire Ivs. fuscous-pubescent beneath: 

 fls. virgate, somewhat spicate on the naked flowering 

 twigs. In and about swamps, Ga. and Fla. to La. and 

 Ark. 



8. atrococcum, Heller (V. corymbosum var. atrococcum, 

 Gray). DOWXY SWAMP BLUEBERRY. A tall branching 

 shrub similar to the last species: Ivs. elh'ptic-oblong, 

 acute, entire, dark green above, densely pubescent 

 beneath, unexpanded at flowering-time: fls. in dense 

 racemes; corolla shorter, greener, and often redder than 

 in the last: berries said to be always black without 

 bloom, smaller than in the last, of good flavor. Moist 

 woods and bogs of E. N. Amer. Apparently distinct 

 from V. corymbosum, but seeming to hybridize with it. 



9. canadense, Kalm. CANADA BLUEBERRY. Low 

 erect shrubs, 1-2 ft. high, much branched: the branch- 

 lets very downy: Ivs. entire, dark green, %-lJ^ in. long, 

 oblong-lanceolate or elliptical, acute, downy on both 

 sides: corolla short-cylindraceous, greenish white, often 

 tinged with red: berries medium or small, late, blue 



with much bloom. Low woods and bogs, New England, 

 mountains of Pa., northward and northwestward. 

 B.M. 3446. "This species, commonly known as "vel- 

 vet-leaf" or "sour-top" because of the character of 

 its foliage and the somewhat acid fr., usually grows in 

 rather boggy localities. The fr. is more acid than the 

 other low forms and matures from 1-3 weeks later. 

 It is not so popular in the market as the sweeter kinds, 

 but it is very prolific and its lateness in ripening is in 

 its favor." 



10. pennsylvanicum, Lam. Low BLUEBERRY. Fig. 

 3893. A dwarf shrub, 6-15 in. high: branchlets gla- 

 brous or hairy northward: Ivs. membranous, oblong- 

 lanceolate or elliptical, acute, distinctly serrulate with 

 bristly pointed teeth, shining and green on both sides 

 but often hairy on the midrib beneath: fls. on short 

 pedicels; corolla short-cylindraceous, greenish white: 

 berries large, bluish black with a bloom, sweet, the 

 earliest to ripen in the North. E. N. Amer. B.M. 3434. 

 Em. 2:456. Rep. Me. Exp. Sta. 1898:171. Var. aagus- 

 tifolium, Gray. A dwarf form with more decidedly 

 lanceolate Ivs. Newfoundland, mountains of New Eng- 

 land and northward. Var. nigrum, Wood (V. nlgrum, 

 Brit.). Foliage very glaucous: berries black, without 

 bloom. Usually found in colonies in the same situa- 

 tions as the typical form and occasionally the two 

 are found intermingled. Rep. Me. Exp. Sta. 1898: 

 171. The fls. are said to appear earlier than those of 

 V. pennsylvanicum. "This species is extremely varia- 

 ble in size and shape of fr. and fls., but, with the 

 exception of the varieties noted, the variations do not 

 appear sufficiently constant to warrant making separa- 

 tions. In general the plant is of low, semi-prostrate 

 habit, is extremely prolific, and thrives well on dry 

 sandy hills. It furnishes the bulk of the blueberries 

 found in the eastern markets. When mown down or 



3894. Vaccinium hirsutam. 



burned, the new erect shoots produce, the following 

 year, a long spike-like mass of bloom and fruit, which 

 may be stripped off by the handfuls. Because of its 

 character and early ripening habit, it is known on the 

 blueberry plains as 'Early Sweet' or 'Low Sweet.' " 



11. vacQlans, Kalm. Low BLUEBERRY. Erect, gla- 

 brous, widely branched, J^-3 ft. high: Ivs. 1-2 in. long, 

 obovate or oval, scarcely acute, entire or sparingly 

 serrulate, pale or dull glaucous on both sides: fls. in 



