Vaccinium ovatum


Vaccinium ovatum is a North American species of flowering shrub known by the common names evergreen huckleberry, winter huckleberry and California huckleberry.

Distribution and ecology

Vaccinium ovatum is a small to medium-sized evergreen shrub native to the Western Pacific Coast of the United States and coastal British Columbia. Typical flora associates are such plants as the western sword fern, coastal woodfern, California snowberry, common snowberry, and thimbleberry. Often found sprouting from nurse logs and growing in conjunction with red huckleberry.

Description

Vaccinium ovatum is a true huckleberry plant, growing well in shade or sun and thriving in acidic soils. Not needing much sun, the plant has a wide variety of forest homes; it is often seen sprouting out of old coast redwood stumps or dense brambles of other forest growths. The shiny, alternately arranged, egg-shaped leaves are 2 to 3 centimeters long and about a centimeter wide with finely serrated edges. During the summer the plant produces round, edible black berries up to a centimeter in diameter.

Uses

The berries are eaten by birds and mammals throughout autumn.

Culinary

Traditionally, huckleberries were sought after and collected by many Native American tribes along the Pacific coast in the region. The berries are delicious raw, similar to but sweeter and more intense than blueberries, and are a favorite ingredient in jams and jellies.

Cultivation

Vaccinium ovatum is grown as an ornamental plant for horticultural use by specialty wholesale, retail, and botanic garden native plant nurseries. The plant is successful in natural landscape and native plant palette style, and habitat gardens and public sustainable landscape and restoration projects that are similar to its habitat conditions.

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