1892 



VACCINIUM 



EE. Racemes shorter. 

 F. Corolla cylindric: 



f r . Hue 18. corymbosum 



FF. Corolla urn-shaped: 



fr. black 19- atrococcum 



AA. Species cultivated chiefly for 



ornament. 



B. Plants low, 1-8 ft. high. 

 c. Stems creeping, with 

 branches erect, or as- 

 cending. 



D. Lvs. small, shining 20. crassifohum 



DD. Lvn. larger, pale or glau- 



cescent 21. uliginosum 



CO. Stems erect: twigs red 22. erythrinum 



BB. Plants taller, 2-20 ft. high. 



0. Foliage evergreen, rigid. .23. ovatum 

 oc. Foliage deciduous. 



D. Surface shining above, 

 more or less pubescent 



beneath 24. arboreum 



DD. Surface paler above, 



glaucous beneath 25. stamineum 



DDD. Surface bright green 

 both sides. (Here 

 might be sought No. 5.) 5. erythrocarpon 



1. Oxycdccus, Linn. SMALL CRANBERRY. CRANBERRY 

 of the Old World. Slender creeping plants with short, 

 filiform stems 4-10 in. long: Ivs. ovate acute or acumi- 

 nate, % in. long, with revolute margins: pedicels 1-4, 

 terminal: corolla deeply 4-parted, the lobes reflexed; 

 anthers exserted, with very long terminal tubes : berry 

 red, globose, Y^-Vz in. in diam., 4-loculed. Sphagnum 

 swamps in subarctic and alpine regions. Though 

 smaller, its fruit is by many considered superior to that 

 of the next. 



2. macrocarpon, Ait. LARGER AMERICAN CRANBERRY. 

 Stems slender, creeping, elongated (1-4 ft.), the flower- 

 ing branches ascending: Ivs. oblong or oval, obtuse or 

 retuse, Yz-Vt in. long, whitened beneath : pedicels sev- 

 eral, axillary and lateral: berry red or reddish, globose 

 or pyriform, %-\ in. long. N. America. B.M. 2586. 

 Em. 2:456. See Cranberry. 



2629. Cowberry or Mountain Cranberry - Vaccinium 

 Vitis-Ideea (X about %). 



i. Vitis-Idfea, Linn. COWBERRY. MOUNTAIN CRAN- 

 BERRY. FOXBERRY. Fig. 2629. Plants low (6-10 in ) 

 Ivs. coriaceous, persistent, obovate or oval, V^-% in 

 long dark green and shining above, with blackish 

 ?orr P h-? tS beneath: fls - ^ short, terminal racemes; 

 Jorolla white or rose-colored, 4-cleft: berries dark red 

 acid, rather bitter. Arctic regions, south to coast of 



VACCINIUM 



New England, Minn, and Brit. Col. B.B. 2:580. L.B.C. 

 7:616 (as var. major) ; ll:1023(var. minor). The fruits, 

 which are rather larger than currants, acid and some- 

 what bitter when uncooked, are largely used in the more 

 northern regions for tarts, jellies and preserves, or as a 

 substitute for the common cranberry. According to 

 Macoun, the fishermen's families along the Gasp6 coast 

 and the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence gather 

 the fruit of this species in large quantities for their 

 own use and for sale, calling it "Low -bush Cranberry." 

 Throughout the whole of northern Canada hunters and 

 trappers, as well as the native Indians, have frequently 

 to depend upon it for food. It is valuable for the shrub- 

 bery border, where the strong contrast of the dark green 

 foliage and the bright-colored persistent fruit is very 

 striking. 



4. parvifdlium, Smith. Shrub, 6-12 ft. high, strag- 

 gling, with slender, green, sharply angled branches: 

 Ivs. oblong or oval, obtuse, entire, dull or pale, %-% 

 in. long: fls. solitary in the axils; corolla globular, 

 nearly white; calyx 5-lobed: berries light red, rather 

 dry. Northern Calif, to Alaska. Offered by only one 

 nurseryman. T. J. Howell, of Oregon, characterizes the 

 fruit as "of good flavor, excellent for tarts," while Gray 

 says "rather dry, hardly edible." 



5. erythrocarpon, Michx. Shrub, erect, divergently 

 branching, 1-4 ft. high: Ivs. oblong-lanceolate, acumi- 

 nate, serrate, thin, 1K-3 in. long: pedicels solitary, 

 axillary, bractless: corolla flesh - colored, K in. long, 

 4-cleft, revolute: berries globose, % in. in diam., light 

 red, turning to deep blue-black at full maturity, watery, 

 slightly acid, scarcely edible. July. Higher Allegha- 

 nies, Va. to Ga. B.M. 7413. 



6. nitidum, Andr. A diffusely much branched shrub, 

 with smooth branchlets: Ivs. thick, coriaceous, shining 

 above, obovate or oblong: fls. in fascicles on short ra- 

 cemes, the almost persistent bracts as well as the 

 roundish or obtuse calyx-teeth reddish; corolla short- 



* campanulate, 5-toothed: berry "somewhat pear-shaped, 

 black." Fla. and Ga. Near to or passing into V. Mijr- 

 sinites. 



7. Myrsinites, Lam. Low, evergreen shrub erect or 

 decumbent: Ivs. exceedingly variable, %-l in. long, en- 

 tire or serrulate, sometimes denticulate, mostly shining 

 above ; bracts and calyx-teeth acute or acutish : berries 

 "globose, blue." Sandy pine barrens N.Car.to Fla. and La. 

 B.M. 1550 (as V. nitidum, var. decumbens ) . The differ- 

 ence between this species and the preceding is obscure. 

 The chief points of distinction seem to be that V. Mi/rxi- 

 nites has puberulent branchlets, prominently veined Ivs. 

 and acute calyx-teeth and bracts, while V. nitidum has 

 smooth branchlets, smaller and faintly veined Ivs., with 

 obtuse or roundish calyx-teeth and bracts. Grown as a 

 pot-plant in coolhouses in England under the name of 

 V. Sprengelii. 



8. vacillans, Kalm. Low BLUEBERRY. BLUE HUCKLE- 

 BERRY. Erect, glabrous: Ivs. obovate or oval, entire or 

 sparingly serrulate: fls. in rather loose clusters, gener- 

 ally on leafless summits of twigs; corolla campanulate 

 or cylindraceous, contracted at the mouth : berries large, 

 blue, with much bloom, of excellent flavor, ripening 

 with V. Canadense. Dry, sandy, or rocky places, N. 

 Amer. B.B. 2:579. Em. 1 :454. -One of the most com- 

 mon species of the northern and central states, particu- 

 larly west of the Alleghanies. The fls. are quite showy, 

 while the fruit is particularly valuable. 



9. Myrtillus, Linn. WHORTLEBERRY. BILBERRY. Low 

 shrubs, glabrous: Ivs. ovate or oval, serrate, conspicu- 

 ously veined, %-% in. long: calyx almost entire: ber- 

 ries black, nodding. Mountainous regions, N. Amer., 

 Eu., Asia. The most widely distributed species and 

 very generally used as an article of diet and in the mak- 

 ing of drinks, particularly in the Old World. It is from 

 this species that the common name Whortleberry is de- 

 rived. Not of special importance in America. 



10. caespitdsum, Michx. DWARF BILBERRY. A dwarf 

 tufted shrub, 3-12 in. high, nearly glabrous throughout: 

 Ivs. obovate, obtuse or acutish, serrulate, shining on 

 both sides: fls. solitary; corolla obovoid, pink or white, 

 slightly 5-toothed (rarely 4-toothed): berries large, 

 globose, blue with bloom, sweet. N. Amer. B.B. 2:576 



