Vaccinium elliottii
| Elliott's blueberry | |
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| Plant in flower | |
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| Species: | V. elliotti
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| Binomial name | |
| Vaccinium elliottii Chapm. 1860
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Vaccinium elliottii (Elliott's blueberry) is a species of Vaccinium in the blueberry group (Vaccinium sect. Cyanococcus). It is native to the southeastern and south-central United States, from southeastern Virginia south to Florida, and west to Arkansas and Texas.
Growth
Vaccinium elliottii is a deciduous shrub 2-4 m (5-10 feet) tall, with small, simple ovoid-acute leaves 15-30 mm (0.5-3.2 inches) long with a finely serrated margin. The flowers are pale pink, bell-shaped, 6-8 mm long, opening in the early spring before the new leaves appear.
The fruit is an edible berry 5-8 mm diameter. There are two variants one having tart shiny blue black berries and the other sweeter type having a whitish waxy bloom over the otherwise blue black berries; they ripen from late spring (in Florida) through summer (in Arkansas and Virginia.
Cultivation and uses
Vaccinium elliottii produces a particularly large yield of somewhat sour berries. It is popular for late-season fruit.
Gallery
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Vaccinium elliottii - Leaves -
An unripe Elliott's blueberry, the actual berry is at the picture's bottom.
