High-Bush Blueberries 1 



By William T. Davis 



There are a number of cranberry bogs at Lakehurst, N. J., 

 that have long been abandoned and are overgrown with many 

 blueberry bushes and small white cedars. The ground being wet 

 the prevailing blueberries are what are now specifically known 

 as Vaccinium corymbosum or high-bush blueberry, and Vaccin- 

 ium atrococcum or black fruited blueberry. These two species 

 are recognized as desirable on account of their superior fruit, 

 especially that of V . corymbosum, which is large, juicy, covered 

 with a bloom, and quite sweet. The fruit of F. atrococcum is 

 smaller, black, and not so sweet. 



Asa Gray says of V. corymbosum in the fifth edition of his 

 Manual : " The species exhibits the greatest variety of forms, 

 the last of these here mentioned is the most remarkable, and the 

 only one which has any claims to be regarded as a species." Then 

 followed four varieties of the last of which he says : " Var. 

 atrococcum has the leaves entire, downy or woolly underneath 

 even when old, as also the branchlets ; berries smaller, black, with- 

 out bloom." 



In the Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club 21: 24. 1894, 

 Mr. A. A. Heller under the heading of Vaccinium atrococcum 

 (A. Gray) says: " This plant, long since proved to be a very dis- 

 tinct species, must bear the name given above, all the others with 

 which it has been associated at different times being homonyms." 



While bushes may be found commonly on Staten Island and 

 elsewhere, that can be immediately placed in either of these two 

 species as at present recognized, yet there are some forms that 

 cannot be so easily disposed of. At Lakehurst, for instance, I 

 noticed in the latter part of July, 1907, many intermediate blue- 



1 Presented March 21, 1908. 



63 



