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Florida evergreen blueberry, shiny blueberry

farkleberry, sparkleberry

Habit Plants forming extensive open colonies, 1.4–10 dm; twigs bright green, ± angled, hairy in lines. Shrubs or trees, trunks to 35 cm diam. at breast height; twigs of current season reddish green, glabrous, glaucous, or glandular-hairy, not verrucose.
Leaves

persistent for 1+ years;

blade green, elliptic, 5–9 × 3–5 mm, coriaceous, margins ± serrulate, surfaces glandular abaxially.

blades pale green, glaucous, obovate to oblong, 22–40 × 12–20 mm, coriaceous, surfaces glabrous or glandular-hairy abaxially, glabrous and lustrous adaxially.

Inflorescence

bracts ± persistent.

Pedicels

slender, 0.8–1.2 cm.

Flowers

calyx pinkish white, becoming greenish, glabrous;

corolla white to pink or red, ± urceolate, 4–8 mm;

filaments ciliate along margins.

calyx 21–29 × 7–13 mm;

corolla white, 3–5 mm;

filaments ciliate.

Berries

black, 7–9 mm diam., glabrous.

shiny black, 7–9 mm diam. 2n = 24.

Seeds

4–13, ca. 1 mm.

2n

= 24, 48.

Vaccinium myrsinites

Vaccinium arboreum

Phenology Flowering winter–spring. Flowering spring.
Habitat Flatwoods, sand-pine scrub, oak-palmetto scrub, scrubby flatwoods, rosemary balds Sandy or rocky habitats, usually xeric woodlands
Elevation 0-30 m (0-100 ft) 0-800 m (0-2600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; SC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; AR; FL; GA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MO; MS; NC; OK; SC; TN; TX; VA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Vaccinium arboreum is rare and local in Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, and Virginia.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 8, p. 527. FNA vol. 8, p. 525.
Parent taxa Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Vaccinium > sect. Cyanococcus Ericaceae > subfam. Vaccinioideae > Vaccinium > sect. Batodendron
Sibling taxa
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. 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. 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. parvifolium, V. scoparium, V. stamineum, V. tenellum, V. uliginosum, V. vitis-idaea
Synonyms Cyanococcus myrsinites, V. nitidum Batodendron arboreum, V. arboreum var. glaucescens
Name authority Lamarck: in J. Lamarck et al., Encycl. 1: 73. (1783) Marshall: Arbust. Amer., 157. 1785 ,
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