Flora of North America species comparison

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Vaccinium boreale

Vaccinium parvifolium

bleuet boréal, northern blueberry, sweet hurts

red huckleberry
Habit Plants forming small, dense colonies, 0.1–0.9 dm, (superficially rhizomatous); twigs green, (delicate), angled, (intricately branched), hairy in lines. Plants crown-forming, sometimes suckering when injured, 10–70 dm, not rhizomatous; twigs of current season green, sharply angled, glabrous or minutely puberulent in lines; (short lateral branches on both orthotropic and plagiotropic shoots often divaricate to 75° giving shrub a distinct fasciculate aspect).
Leaves

deciduous;

blade bright green, narrowly elliptic, 8–21 × 2–6 mm, membranous, margins sharply, uniformly serrate, surfaces usually glabrous, eglandular abaxially.

blades dark green, ovate to oblong-elliptic, 13–25 × 8–14 mm, margins entire, surfaces puberulent or glabrous abaxially, glabrous adaxially.
Flowers

calyx green, glaucous, glabrous (sometimes ciliate);

corolla white to greenish white, cylindric, 3–4 mm;

filaments ciliate.

calyx pale green, lobes spreading, distinct, broadly ovate, 0.4–0.6 mm, glabrous;

corolla pink, bronze, or yellowish green, globose to urceolate, 4–6 × 3–5 mm, thin, glaucous;

filaments glabrous.
Berries

blue, glaucous, 3–5 mm diam., glabrous.

red, sometimes faintly glaucous, translucent, 7–10 mm diam.
Seeds

10–30, ca. 1.1 mm.

ca. 1 mm.
2n

= 24.

= 24.

Vaccinium boreale

Vaccinium parvifolium
Phenology Flowering late spring–early summer. Flowering spring–summer.
Habitat Headlands, open, rocky uplands, alpine heaths and meadows, forest-tundra. 0-2000 m Coniferous woods, often on stumps and logs, disturbed areas
Elevation 0-1100 m (0-3600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
ME; NH; NY; VT; NB; NL; NS; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; CA; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

The red, waxy fruits of Vaccinium parvifolium were popular with all coastal Indian tribes and remain so with recreational pickers. The berries are somewhat sour but make excellent pastries and preserves. Commercial use of V. parvifolium is limited; vigorous growth, ease of harvest, and site adaptability provide opportunities.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 528. FNA vol. 8, p. 522.
Parent taxa Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Vaccinium > sect. Cyanococcus Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Vaccinium > sect. Myrtillus
Sibling taxa
V. angustifolium, V. arboreum, V. cespitosum, V. corymbosum, V. crassifolium, V. darrowii, V. deliciosum, V. erythrocarpum, V. hirsutum, V. macrocarpon, V. membranaceum, V. myrsinites, V. myrtilloides, V. myrtillus, V. ovalifolium, V. ovatum, V. oxycoccos, V. pallidum, V. parvifolium, V. scoparium, V. stamineum, V. tenellum, V. uliginosum, V. vitis-idaea
V. angustifolium, V. arboreum, V. boreale, V. cespitosum, V. corymbosum, V. crassifolium, V. darrowii, V. deliciosum, V. erythrocarpum, V. hirsutum, V. macrocarpon, V. membranaceum, V. myrsinites, V. myrtilloides, V. myrtillus, V. ovalifolium, V. ovatum, V. oxycoccos, V. pallidum, V. scoparium, V. stamineum, V. tenellum, V. uliginosum, V. vitis-idaea
Name authority I. V. Hall & Aalders: Amer. J. Bot. 48: 200. 1961 , Smith: in A. Rees, Cycl. 36: Vaccinium no. 3. 1817 ,
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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