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Plant

Highbush blueberry

Vaccinium corymbosum

A native deciduous shrub of acid-soil wetlands, pine barrens, and damp forest edges across eastern North America — and the wild ancestor of nearly all commercial blueberry cultivars. Found on Staten Island in pine-barrens-style sites at Clay Pit Ponds, in the Greenbelt's wetter pockets, and on dune-edge and former-pasture sites borough-wide. Critical late-spring nectar source; berries are wildlife food and human food.

Scientific

[[blueberry|Vaccinium]] corymbosum is a 6–12 ft deciduous shrub of acid soils — pH 4.5–5.5 optimal. Tolerates seasonally wet conditions; common in pine-barrens, peat bogs, and acidic wetland edges. White-pink urn-shaped spring flowers; blue-black berries in summer.

The wild ancestor of essentially all commercial [[blueberry|blueberry]] cultivars. Modern cultivated varieties are mostly V. corymbosum selections plus interspecific hybrids. Blueberry cultivation depends on bumble bees and other [[native-bees|native bees]] that can buzz-pollinate the urn-shaped flowers (honeybees pollinate inefficiently).

On Staten Island

Native shrub layer at [[clay-pit-ponds-state-park-preserve|Clay Pit Ponds State Park Preserve]] (pine-barrens-style), in Greenbelt wetter pockets, and at dune-edge and former-pasture sites. Fall foliage is brilliant red — among the most-conspicuous fall color among the borough’s native shrubs.

See also

Auto-generated from this entry’s typed relations: frontmatter, grouped by relation type so the editorial signal isn’t flattened.

  • Substrate of: [[pine-barrens]]
  • Member of: [[plants]]
  • Contained by: [[staten-island]]

Sources

  • USDA NRCS Plants Database: [[blueberry|highbush blueberry]]
  • Pine-barrens ecosystem documentation (USFS, NJ Pinelands)

Rooted in life.

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Scientific

cousin of

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