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.
Vaccinium elliottii is a deciduous shrub 2–4m (6+1⁄2–13ft) tall, with small, simple ovoid-acute leaves15–30mm (5⁄8–1+1⁄8in) long with a finely serrated margin. The flowers are pale pink, bell-shaped, 6–8mm (1⁄4–3⁄8in) long, opening in the early spring before the new leaves appear.
The fruit is an edible berry 5–8mm 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). Chromosome count 2n=24.[2]
Leaves
Plant with unripe berries
Distribution and habitat
It is native to the southeastern and south-central United States, from southeastern Virginia south to Florida, and west to Arkansas and Texas.
V. elliottii has been observed in habitat types such as mixed hardwood forests, swampy woodlands, floodplains, and longleaf pine ridges.[3]
Uses
Vaccinium elliottii produces a particularly large yield of somewhat sour berries. It is popular for late-season fruit.
↑ Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu. Last accessed: June 2023. Collectors: Loran C. Anderson, Tom Barnes, C. Chapman, James P. Gillespie, R. K. Godfrey, Gary R. Knight, R. Kral, H. Kurz, Sidney McDaniel, Richard S. Mitchell, and Camm Swift. States and counties: Florida: Calhoun, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Jackson, Lafayette, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Okaloosa, Wakulla, Walton, Santa Rosa, and Washington.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Leaves
Plant with unripe berries
