Vaccinium cespitosum

Vaccinium cespitosum (also, caespitosum), known as the dwarf bilberry, dwarf blueberry, or dwarf huckleberry, is a species of flowering shrub in the genus Vaccinium, which includes blueberries, huckleberries, and cranberries.

Description

File:Vaccinium caespitosum 3-eheep (5098011952).jpg

Fruit

Vaccinium cespitosum is a low-lying plant rarely reaching half a meter (1.5 feet) in height which forms a carpet-like stand in rocky mountainous meadows. The dwarf bilberry foliage is reddish-green to green and the flowers are tiny urn-shaped light pink cups less than a centimeter (<0.4 inches) wide. It has many somewhat angled branches. It forms low mats as it spreads on runners or stolons. The flowers are waxy, bell-shaped, and have five united petals. Unlike true blueberries, which flowers are in clusters, the flowers always occur singly. The bloom period is between the months of May to June, where they are pollinated by bees and flies. The dark blue fruit are on the plant by late-summer. The berries also have a whitish bloom. There are many seeds in the fruit.

The fruits are blue bilberries.

Distribution and habitat

Vaccinium cespitosum is widespread across much of Canada including all three Arctic territories, as well as the northern and western United States, Mexico, and Guatemala. Its native habitats include gravelly or rocky meadows and mountain slopes. In the Great Lakes area, it is usually found in savannas or conifer forests. Where bilberry is common, it can be found at higher elevations and in spruce-fir forest. It can also be found in alpine heath and in shrublands.

Ecology

Both grizzly and black bears eat the fruit. The plant is a host of the butterfly species Lycaeides idas nabokovi.

Uses

The blue bilberries are edible.

External links

• Jepson Manual Treatment: Vaccinium cespitosum
• United States Department of Agriculture Plants Profile: Vaccinium cespitosum
• Template:CalPhotos

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