Black highbush blueberry facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Black highbush blueberry
Scientific classification
Genus:	Vaccinium
Species:	fuscatum

The black highbush blueberry (scientific name: Vaccinium fuscatum) is a type of flowering plant. It belongs to the heath family, which is also known as Ericaceae. This family includes many well-known plants like heather and rhododendron.

This blueberry plant is native to North America. You can find it growing naturally in Ontario, Canada. It also grows across the eastern United States.

Where Does the Black Highbush Blueberry Grow?

This plant loves wet places. Its natural home is in areas like bogs, which are spongy wetlands. It also thrives in pocosins, which are swampy, forested wetlands. You can often spot it in regular swamps too. These wet habitats provide the perfect conditions for it to grow.

What Does the Black Highbush Blueberry Look Like?

The black highbush blueberry is an upright shrub. This means it grows straight up and has many woody stems. It is also a deciduous plant. This means its leaves fall off in the autumn, just like many trees do.

How Is It Different from Other Blueberries?

This plant looks a lot like another common blueberry, the Northern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum). But there are a few ways to tell them apart.

• Hairy Stems and Leaves: The stems of the black highbush blueberry have tiny, dull-colored hairs. The underside of its leaves also feels a bit fuzzy because of these hairs. The Northern highbush blueberry usually doesn't have these hairs.
• Dark Fruit: The fruit of this plant is dark in color. It also doesn't have a powdery, whitish coating. This coating is called a "glaucous" coating and is often seen on other blueberries.
• Early Blooms: It starts to produce its flowers very early in the spring. This is often earlier than other types of highbush blueberries.

Sometimes, scientists think that Vaccinium fuscatum might just be a type of Vaccinium corymbosum. They are very closely related!