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Blueberries are flowering plant
Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the genus Vaccinium
Vaccinium

Vaccinium is a genus of shrubs or dwarf shrubs in the plant Family Ericaceae. The fruit of many species are eaten by humans and some are of commercial importance, including the cranberry, blueberry, bilberry or whortleberry, lingonberry or cowberry, and huckleberry ....
, sect. Cyanococcus. The species are native only to North America. They are shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s varying in size from 10 cm tall to 4 m tall; the smaller species are known as "lowbush blueberries" (synonymous with "wild"), and the larger species as "highbush blueberries". The leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
 can be either deciduous
Deciduous

Deciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe....
 or evergreen
Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
, ovate
Ovate

Ovate can mean:* Shaped like an Egg . This is commonly used to describe leaf, such as those of the trumpet vine.* A junior rank in an organisation in which the highest rank is called "druid"....
 to lanceolate, and from 1–8 cm long and 0.5–3.5 cm broad.






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Blueberries are flowering plant
Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the genus Vaccinium
Vaccinium

Vaccinium is a genus of shrubs or dwarf shrubs in the plant Family Ericaceae. The fruit of many species are eaten by humans and some are of commercial importance, including the cranberry, blueberry, bilberry or whortleberry, lingonberry or cowberry, and huckleberry ....
, sect. Cyanococcus. The species are native only to North America. They are shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s varying in size from 10 cm tall to 4 m tall; the smaller species are known as "lowbush blueberries" (synonymous with "wild"), and the larger species as "highbush blueberries". The leaves
Leaf

In botany, a leaf is an above-ground plant Organ specialized for photosynthesis. For this purpose, a leaf is typically flat and thin, to expose the cells containing chloroplast to light over a broad area, and to allow light to penetrate fully into the tissues....
 can be either deciduous
Deciduous

Deciduous means falling off at maturity or tending to fall off and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe....
 or evergreen
Evergreen

In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant having leaf all year round. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage for part of the year....
, ovate
Ovate

Ovate can mean:* Shaped like an Egg . This is commonly used to describe leaf, such as those of the trumpet vine.* A junior rank in an organisation in which the highest rank is called "druid"....
 to lanceolate, and from 1–8 cm long and 0.5–3.5 cm broad. The flower
Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish.

The fruit
Fruit

The term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. In botany, which is the scientific study of plants, fruits are the ripened Ovary of flowering plants....
 is a false berry 5–16 mm diameter with a flared "crown" at the end; they are pale greenish at first, then reddish-purple, and finally indigo on ripening. They have a sweet taste when mature, with variable acidity. Blueberry bushes typically bear fruit from May through June in the Western Hemisphere; "blueberry season" peaks in July, which is National Blueberry Month in the United States and Germany.

Beginning in 2005, blueberries have been discussed among a category of functional food
Functional food

Functional food or medicinal food is any fresh or processed food claimed to have a health-promoting and/or disease-preventing property beyond the basic nutritional function of supplying nutrients, although there is no consensus on an exact definition of the term....
s called superfruit
Superfruit

Superfruit, a marketing term first used in the food and beverage industry in 2005, refers to a fruit which combines exceptional nutrient richness and antioxidant quality with appealing taste that can stimulate and retain loyalty for consumer products....
s having the favorable combination of nutrient
Nutrient

A nutrient is a chemical that an organism needs to live and grow or a substance used in an organism's metabolism which must be taken in from its environment....
 richness, antioxidant
Antioxidant

An antioxidant is a molecule capable of slowing or preventing the Redox of other molecules. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that transfers electrons from a substance to an oxidizing agent....
 strength, emerging research evidence for health benefits and versatility for manufacturing popular consumer products.

Origins


All species whose English common name
Common name

A common name is a name in general use within a community . A common name is not necessarily a commonly used name.Many of the conventions and traditions described in this article are based on the English language, and thus may not apply to common names in other languages....
s include "blueberry" are currently classified in section Cyanococcus of the genus Vaccinium. Several other plants of the genus Vaccinium also produce blue berries which are sometimes confused with blueberries, mainly the predominantly European bilberry
Bilberry

Bilberry is a name given to several species of low-growing shrubs in the genus Vaccinium that bears false berrys. The species most often referred to is Vaccinium myrtillus L., otherwise known as the European blueberry....
 (Vaccinium myrtillus), which in many languages has a name that means "blueberry" in English. See the Identification section for more information.

Although blueberries are native to North America, they are now grown also in the Southern Hemisphere in Australia, New Zealand and South American countries, and are air-shipped as fresh produce to markets around the world.

Species

  • Vaccinium angustifolium
    Lowbush blueberry

    Lowbush Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to eastern and central Canada and the Northeastern United States United States, growing as far south as West Virginia and west to Minnesota and Manitoba....
     (Lowbush Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium boreale (Northern Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium caesariense (New Jersey Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium corymbosum
    Northern highbush blueberry

    Northern Highbush Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to eastern North America, growing from Nova Scotia and Ontario south to Alabama, and west to Wisconsin....
     (Northern Highbush Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium darrowii
    Vaccinium darrowii

    Vaccinium darrowii is a species of Vaccinium in the blueberry group ....
     (Southern Highbush Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium elliottii
    Vaccinium elliottii

    Vaccinum elliottii is a species of Vaccinium in the blueberry group . It is native to the southeastern United States, from southeastern Virginia south to Florida, and west to Arkansas and Texas....
     (Elliott Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium formosum (southern blueberry)
  • Vaccinium fuscatum (Black Highbush Blueberry; syn. V. atrococcum)
  • Vaccinium hirsutum (Hairy-fruited Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium myrtilloides
    Canadian blueberry

    Canadian Blueberry , Velvetleaf Huckleberry, Velvetleaf Blueberry, Common Blueberry, or Sourtop Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to Canada and the northeastern and northwestern United States, as well as the Great Lakes states....
     (Canadian Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium pallidum (Dryland Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium simulatum (Upland Highbush Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium tenellum (Southern Blueberry)
  • Vaccinium virgatum
    Rabbiteye blueberry

    Rabbiteye Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to the southeastern United States, from North Carolina south to Florida and west to Texas....
     (Rabbiteye Blueberry; syn. V. ashei)


    • Some other blue-fruited species of Vaccinium:
    • Vaccinium koreanum
    • Vaccinium myrsinites (Evergreen Blueberry)
    • Vaccinium myrtillus (Bilberry)


    Identification

    True wild blueberries (section Cyanococcus of the genus Vaccinium) occur naturally only in eastern and north-central North America. Other sections in the genus, native to other parts of the world including western North America, Europe, and Asia, include other wild shrubs producing similar-looking edible berries such as huckleberries
    Huckleberry

    Huckleberry may refer to:*Huckleberry plants from the family Ericaceae*Red Huckleberry *Garden huckleberry ...
    , cranberries
    Cranberry

    Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the genus Vaccinium subgenus Oxycoccos, or in some treatments, in the distinct genus Oxycoccos....
    , bilberries
    Bilberry

    Bilberry is a name given to several species of low-growing shrubs in the genus Vaccinium that bears false berrys. The species most often referred to is Vaccinium myrtillus L., otherwise known as the European blueberry....
     and cowberries. These are sometimes colloquially called blueberries and sold as blueberry jam or other products.

    The names of blue berries in languages other than English often translate as "blueberry", e.g. Scots Blaeberry and Norwegian Blåbær, although those berries may belong to another species. For example, Blåbær and French myrtilles usually refer to the European native bilberry, while bleuets refers to the North American blueberry.

    Aside from location of origin, blueberries can be distinguished from bilberries by cutting them in half. Ripe blueberries have white or greenish flesh, while bilberries and huckleberries are colored purple throughout.

    Cultivation

    Blueberries may be cultivated, or they may be picked from semi-wild or wild bushes. In North America, the most common cultivated species is V. corymbosum, the Northern highbush blueberry
    Northern highbush blueberry

    Northern Highbush Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to eastern North America, growing from Nova Scotia and Ontario south to Alabama, and west to Wisconsin....
    . Hybrids of this with other Vaccinium species adapted to southern U.S. climates are known collectively as Southern highbush blueberries.

    Blueberry Plants
    So-called "wild" (lowbush) blueberries, smaller than cultivated highbush ones, are prized for their intense color. The lowbush blueberry
    Lowbush blueberry

    Lowbush Blueberry is a species of blueberry native to eastern and central Canada and the Northeastern United States United States, growing as far south as West Virginia and west to Minnesota and Manitoba....
    , V. angustifolium, is found from the Atlantic provinces westward to Quebec
    Quebec

    Quebec , in French language, Qu?bec , is a Provinces and territories of Canada in the Central Canada and Eastern Canada regions of Canada....
     and southward to Michigan
    Michigan

    Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
     and West Virginia
    West Virginia

    West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
    . In some areas, it produces natural blueberry barrens, where it is the dominant species covering large areas. Several First Nations
    First Nations

    First Nations is a term of ethnicity that refers to the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor M?tis people....
     communities in Ontario
    Ontario

    Ontario is a Provinces and territories of Canada located in the Central Canada part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest, after Quebec, in total area....
     are involved in harvesting wild blueberries. Lowbush species are fire-tolerant and blueberry production often increases following a forest fire
    Wildfire

    A wildfire is any uncontrolled, non-structure fire that occurs in the wilderness, wildland, or The Bush. Synonyms such as wildland fire, forest fire, brush fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, Peat#Fires, bushfire , and hill fire are commonly used....
     as the plants regenerate rapidly and benefit from removal of competing vegetation. Wild has been adopted as a marketing term for harvests of managed native stands of low-bush blueberries. The bushes are not planted or genetically manipulated, but they are pruned or burned over every two years, and pests are "managed".

    There are numerous highbush cultivar
    Cultivar

    A cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when Plant propagation it retains those characteristics....
    s of blueberries, each of which have a unique and diverse flavor. The most important blueberry breeding program has been the USDA-ARS breeding program based at Beltsville, Maryland, and Chatsworth, New Jersey. This program began when Frederick Coville of the USDA-ARS collaborated with Elizabeth Coleman White
    Elizabeth Coleman White

    Elizabeth Coleman White was a New Jersey agricultural specialist who collaborated with Frederick Vernon Coville to develop and commercialize a cultivated blueberries....
     of New Jersey
    New Jersey

    New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania....
    . In the early part of the 20th Century, White offered wild pickers cash for large-fruited blueberry plants. 'Rubel', one such wild blueberry cultivar, is the origin of many of the current hybrid cultivars.

    Rabbiteye Blueberry (V. virgatum, syn. V. ashei) is a southern type of blueberry produced from the Carolinas to the Gulf Coast states.

    Other important species in North America include V. pallidum, the Hillside or Dryland Blueberry. It is native to the eastern U.S., and common in the Appalachians and the Piedmont
    Piedmont (United States)

    Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching from New Jersey in the north to central Alabama in the south....
     of the Southeast. Sparkleberry, V. arboreum, is a common wild species on sandy soils in the southeastern U.S. Its fruits are important to wildlife, and the flowers important to beekeepers.

    Growing areas


    Significant production of highbush blueberries occurs in British Columbia
    British Columbia

    British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
    , Michigan
    Michigan

    Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
    , New Jersey
    New Jersey

    New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic States and Northeastern United States regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north by New York, on the east by the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, on the southwest by Delaware, and on the west by Pennsylvania....
    , North Carolina
    North Carolina

    North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
    , Oregon
    Oregon

    Oregon is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The area was inhabited by many indigenous tribes before the arrival of traders, explorers and settlers....
    , and Washington
    Washington

    Washington is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute....
    . The production of southern highbush varieties in California
    California

    California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
     is rapidly increasing, as varieties originating from the University of Florida
    University of Florida

    The University of Florida is a Public university land-grant university, sea grant colleges, Space grant colleges major research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida, in the United States....
     and North Carolina State University
    North Carolina State University

    North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public university, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States....
     have been introduced. Southern highbush berries are now also cultivated in the Mediterranean regions of Europe, Southern Hemisphere
    Southern Hemisphere

    The Southern Hemisphere is the half of a planet that is south of the equator?the word sphere literally means 'half ball'. It is also that half of the celestial sphere south of the celestial equator....
     countries and China.

    United States


    Maine
    Maine

    The State of Maine is a U.S. state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast....
     produces 25% of all lowbush blueberries in North America, making it the largest producer in the world. Maine's 24,291 hectares (FAO figures, 60,023 acres) of blueberry were propagated from native plants that occur naturally in the understorey of its coastal forests. The Maine crop requires about 50,000 beehives
    Beehive (beekeeping)

    A beehive is an enclosed structure in which some honey bee species of the genus Apis live and raise their young. Natural beehives are naturally-occurring structures occupied by honey bee colonies, while domesticated honey bees live in man-made beehives, often in an apiary....
     for pollination
    Pollination

    Pollination in flowering plants and gymnosperms is the process that transfers pollen, which contain the male gametes to where the female gamete are contained within the carpel; in gymnosperms the pollen is directly applied to the ovule itself....
    , with most of the hives being trucked in from other states for that purpose. Many towns in Maine lay claim to being the blueberry capital and several festivals are centered around the blueberry. The wild blueberry is the official fruit of Maine and is often as much a symbol of Maine as the lobster. While Maine is the leader of lowbush blueberry production in the United States, Michigan
    Michigan

    Michigan is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States of America. It was named after Lake Michigan, whose name is a French adaptation of the Anishinaabe language term mishigama, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
     is the leader in highbush production.

    Significant acreages of highbush blueberries are cultivated in the southern states of Florida
    Florida

    Florida is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States of the United States, bordering Alabama to the northwest and Georgia to the northeast....
    , Georgia
    Georgia (U.S. state)

    Georgia is a U.S. state in the United States and was one of the original Thirteen Colonies that revolted against United Kingdom rule in the American Revolution....
     and North Carolina
    North Carolina

    North Carolina is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Seaboard in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north....
    .

    Canada

    Canadian exports of blueberries in 2007 were $323 million, the largest fruit crop produced nationally, occupying more than half of all Canadian fruit acreage. Among the most productive growing regions in the world, British Columbia is the largest Canadian producer of highbush blueberries, yielding 63 million pounds (29 million kg) in 2004 and over $100 million in 2008 revenues.

    Quebec
    Quebec

    Quebec , in French language, Qu?bec , is a Provinces and territories of Canada in the Central Canada and Eastern Canada regions of Canada....
     produces a large quantity of wild blueberries, especially in the regions of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean
    Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean

    Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean is a region in Quebec, Canada. It contains the Saguenay Fjord, the estuary of the Saguenay River, stretching through much of the region....
     (where a popular name for inhabitants of the regions is Bleuets, or "blueberries"), and Côte-Nord
    Côte-Nord

    C?te-Nord is the second largest administrative region by land area in Quebec, Canada, after Nord-du-Qu?bec. It covers much of the northern shore of the Saint Lawrence River estuary and the Gulf of Saint Lawrence past Tadoussac....
     which together provide 40% of Quebec
    Quebec

    Quebec , in French language, Qu?bec , is a Provinces and territories of Canada in the Central Canada and Eastern Canada regions of Canada....
    's total provincial production. Due in part to declining frequency and intensity of spring frosts, Quebec's wild blueberry production (27 million kg in 2008) now rivals that of Maine, creating cross-border tensions on pricing and regional markets.

    Nova Scotia
    Nova Scotia

    Nova Scotia is a Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada located on Canada's southeastern coast. It is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada....
    , the biggest producer of wild blueberries in Canada, recognizes the blueberry as its official provincial berry. The town of Oxford
    Oxford, Nova Scotia

    Oxford is a town in Cumberland County, Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia, Canada 32 kilometers east of Amherst, Nova Scotia....
     is known as the Wild Blueberry Capital of Canada. New Brunswick
    New Brunswick

    New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only Constitution of Canada bilingual province in the federation. The provincial capital is Fredericton....
     and Prince Edward Island
    Prince Edward Island

    Prince Edward Island is a Canada Provinces and territories of Canada consisting of an island of the same name. The Maritimes is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population ....
     are other Atlantic provinces with major wild blueberry farming.

    Atlantic Canada
    Atlantic Canada

    File:Atlantic Canada.svgAtlantic Canada, also known as the Atlantic provinces, is the List of regions of Canada of Canada comprising four Provinces and territories of Canada located on the Atlantic Ocean: the three Maritimes ? New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island ? and Newfoundland and Labrador....
     contributes approximately half of the total North American annual production of 68 million kg of wild blueberries, a three-fold increase since the 1980s. Gains in yield derived from improved field management, including better weed control, fertility management and irrigation methods, increased use of bees for pollination, and application of mechanical harvesters.

    Europe

    Highbush blueberries were first introduced to Germany and the Netherlands in the 1930s and have since been spread to Poland, Italy, Hungary and other countries of Europe (Nauman, 1993).

    "Many growers in France, Austria, and Italy realized too that it pays to cultivate highbush blueberries, and that good economic gain can be obtained," according to an industry researcher. "Even in Belgium and Norway, some very promising trials with special methods of blueberry cultivation resulted in a limited commercial production which is very successful. ... Except in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain, a blueberry industry is developing in all regions where the production is possible due to the climatic and edaphic conditions ..." (Nauman, 1993).

    Black Sea Region
    Black Sea Region

    The Black Sea Region is one of Turkey's Regions_of_Turkey....
     of Turkey
    Turkey

    Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country that stretches across the Anatolian peninsula in southwest Asia and Thrace in the Balkans region of Southern Europe....
     is one of the main origins of Caucasian whortleberry (Vaccinium arctostaphylos), bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)and bog blueberry, bog whortleberry or bog bilberry (Vaccinium uliginosum. In this area, the little known blueberries called as different names as likapa, ligarba, kaskanaka, çela, morsvi, lifos, çali çilegi, ayi üzümü, çoban üzümü and so on. This region from Artvin to Kirklareli with some special land of Bursa (including Rize, Trabzon, Ordu, Giresun, Samsun, Sinop, and some special land of Kastamonu, Zonguldak, Istanbul, Izmit and Adapazari) has rainy, humid growing periods and natural acidic soils which suitable for blueberries (Çelik, 2005, 2006 and 2007). Native Vaccinium species and open pollinated types can grow natively over hundred years around the Black Sea Region of Turkey. These native blueberries consumes as jelly, dried or fresh fruits for local peoples in Turkey and especially by the settlers of Black Sea Region (Çelik, 2005). The cultiveted blueberries fist introduced into Turkey by Dr. Celik in 2000.

    Southern hemisphere

    In the Southern hemisphere, Chile
    Chile

    Chile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow coastal strip wedged between the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean....
    , Argentina
    Argentina

    Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic , is a country in South America, constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city....
    , Uruguay
    Uruguay

    Uruguay is a country located in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to 3.46 million people, of whom 1.7 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area....
    , South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia now export blueberries.

    Blueberries were first introduced to Australia in the 1950s, but the effort was unsuccessful. "In the early 1970s David Jones from the Victorian Department of Agriculture imported seed from the U.S. and a selection trial was started. This work was continued by Ridley Bell", who imported more American varieties. In the mid-1970s the Australian Blueberry Growers Association (ABGA) was formed. (Clayton-Greene)

    By the early 1980s, the blueberry industry was started in New Zealand and is still growing. (BNZ, n.d)

    South Africa exports blueberries to Europe.

    The industry is even newer in Argentina: "Argentine blueberry production has increased over the last three years with planted area up to 400 percent," according to a 2005 report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. But that increase comes from a tiny base of 400 hectares in 2001 (to 1,600 hectares in 2004). The industry is new in the country and farmers are still learning the business. "Argentine blueberry production has thrived in three different regions: the province of Entre Rios in Northeastern Argentina, the province of Buenos Aires, near the country’s capital city Buenos Aires, and the southern Patagonian valleys," according to the report. (Gain, 2005)

    Chile
    Chile

    Chile, officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long and narrow coastal strip wedged between the Andes mountains and the Pacific Ocean....
     is the biggest producer in South America and the largest exporter to the northern hemisphere, with an estimated surface of 6,800 hectares (as of 2007). Introduction of the first plants started in the early 1980s and production started in the late 80s in the southern part of the country. Today production ranges from Copiapó
    Copiapó

    Copiap? is the capital of the Atacama Region and of the Province of Copiap?, in Chile. It was founded on December 8, 1744 by the governor Jos? Antonio Manso de Velasco....
     in the north to Puerto Montt
    Puerto Montt

    Puerto Montt is a port city and commune in southern Chile, located at the northern end of the Reloncav? Sound in the Llanquihue Province, Los Lagos Region....
     in the south, which allows the country to offer blueberries from October through late March. The main production area today is the Bio Bio region. Production has evolved rapidly in the last decade, becoming the 4th most important fruit exported in value terms. Fresh market blueberries are exported mainly to North America (80%) followed by Europe (18%). Information from the Fruit Export Association, Chile exported in 2007 more than 21 thousand MT of fresh blueberries and more than 1,000 MT of frozen product. Most of the production comes from the highbush type, but several rabbiteye blueberries are grown in the country as well. Information taken from the Chilean Fruit Producers Federation and their Blueberry Committee, stands that there are over 800 blueberry producers with surfaces ranging from 50 to 200 hectares.

    Growing seasons

    Maturing Blueberry
    Blueberry production in North America typically starts in mid-May (in Florida) and ends in September, when some fruit is held over in controlled-atmosphere storage in Oregon, Washington, and Canada. (Gaskell, 2006).

    Sources give different periods for the growing season in the southern hemisphere. According to the University of California Extension Service, Chile, New Zealand and Argentina begin harvesting in the winter and continue till mid-March, when Chilean blueberries are held over in controlled-atmosphere storage for about six weeks. "As a result, blueberries reach annual peak prices in mid-April."(Gaskell, 2006)

    In Chile, San Jose Farms, which says (according to its Web site) that it is one of the oldest blueberry producers in the country (it started in the early 1990s), states that its harvest season starts in November and continues through March. (San Jose, n.d.)

    In Argentina: "The marketing year (MY) for blueberries begins in September and ends in February," according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture report. (Gain, 2005) Blueberries grow in April & May.

    Uses


    Blueberries are sold fresh or processed as individually quick frozen (IQF) fruit, purée
    Purée

    Pur?e and mash are general terms for food, usually vegetables or legumes, that have been ground, pressed, and/or strainer to the consistency of a soft paste or thick liquid....
    , juice, or dried or infused berries which in turn may be used in a variety of consumer goods such as jellies, jams, pie
    Pie

    A pie is a baked dish which is usually made of a pastry dough shell that covers or completely contains a filling of various sweetness or savoury ingredients....
    s, muffins, snack foods, and cereals.

    To freeze freshly picked blueberries, place in a single layer on a cookie sheet in the freezer. When frozen, put in freezer containers. It is best to rinse before using, but not before freezing.

    Blueberry jam is made from blueberries, sugar
    Sugar

    Sugar is a class of edible crystalline substances, mainly sucrose, lactose, and fructose. Human taste buds interpret its flavor as sweet. Sugar as a basic food carbohydrate primarily comes from sugar cane and from sugar beet, but also appears in fruit, honey, sorghum, sugar maple , and in many other sources....
    , water, and fruit pectin
    Pectin

    Pectin is a structural heteropolysaccharide contained in the primary cell walls of terrestrial plants. It was first isolated and described in 1825 by Henri Braconnot....
    . Premium blueberry jam, usually made from wild blueberries, is common in Maine
    Maine

    The State of Maine is a U.S. state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America, bordering the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, New Hampshire to the southwest, the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast....
    , Ontario
    Ontario

    Ontario is a Provinces and territories of Canada located in the Central Canada part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest, after Quebec, in total area....
    , Quebec
    Quebec

    Quebec , in French language, Qu?bec , is a Provinces and territories of Canada in the Central Canada and Eastern Canada regions of Canada....
    , and British Columbia
    British Columbia

    British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
    .

    Nutrients and phytochemicals


    Blueberries have a diverse range of micronutrient
    Micronutrient

    Micronutrients are nutrients needed for life in small quantities. The Microminerals or trace elements include at least iron, cobalt, chromium, copper, iodine, manganese, selenium, zinc and molybdenum....
    s, with notably high levels (relative to respective Dietary Reference Intake
    Dietary Reference Intake

    The Dietary Reference Intake is a system of nutrition recommendations from the Institute of Medicine of the US United States National Academy of Sciences....
    s) of the essential dietary mineral
    Dietary mineral

    Dietary minerals are the chemical elements required by living organisms, other than the four elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen present in common organic chemistry....
     manganese
    Manganese

    Manganese is a chemical element, designated by the symbol Mn. It has the atomic number 25. It is found as a Oxidation state in nature , and in many minerals....
    , vitamin B6
    Vitamin B6

    Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin and is part of the vitamin B complex group. Pyridoxal phosphate is the active form and is a cofactor in many reactions of amino acid metabolism, including transamination, deamination, and decarboxylation....
    , vitamin C
    Vitamin C

    Vitamin C or ascorbic acid is an essential nutrient for humans, a large number of simian species, a small number of other mammalian species , a few species of birds, and some fish....
    , vitamin K
    Vitamin K

    Vitamin K denotes a group of lipophilic, hydrophobic vitamins that are needed for the posttranslational modification of certain proteins, mostly required for blood coagulation....
     and dietary fiber
    Dietary fiber

    Dietary fiber, sometimes called "roughage", is the indigestible portion of plant foods that pushes food through the digestive system, absorbing water and easing defecation....
     (table). One serving provides a relatively low glycemic load
    Glycemic load

    The glycemic load is a ranking system for carbohydrate content in food portions based on their glycemic index and the portion size.The usefulness of glycemic load is based on the idea that a high glycemic index food consumed in small quantities would give the same effect as larger quantities of a low glycemic index food on blood sugar....
     score of 4 out of 100 per day.

    Especially in wild species, blueberries contain anthocyanin
    Anthocyanin

    Anthocyanins are solubility vacuole pigments that may appear red, purple, or blue according to pH. They belong to a parent class of molecules called flavonoids synthesized via the phenylpropanoid pathway....
    s, other antioxidant
    Antioxidant

    An antioxidant is a molecule capable of slowing or preventing the Redox of other molecules. Oxidation is a chemical reaction that transfers electrons from a substance to an oxidizing agent....
     pigment
    Pigment

    A pigment is a material that changes the color of light it Reflection as the result of selective color absorption. This physical process differs from fluorescence, phosphorescence, and other forms of luminescence, in which the material itself emits light....
    s and various phytochemical
    Phytochemical

    Phytochemicals are plant-derived chemical compounds under scientific research for their potential health-promoting properties. Phytochemicals are non-essential nutrients, but still they have been scientifically confirmed as being important to human health....
    s possibly having a role in reducing risks of some diseases, including inflammation
    Inflammation

    Inflammation is the complex biological response of Blood vessel tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. It is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli as well as initiate the healing process for the tissue....
     and different cancer
    Cancer

    Cancer is a class of diseases in which a group of cell display uncontrolled growth , invasion , and sometimes metastasis . These three malignant properties of cancers differentiate them from benign tumors, which are self-limited, do not invade or metastasize....
    s.

    Potential anti-disease effects


    Researchers have shown that blueberry anthocyanin
    Anthocyanin

    Anthocyanins are solubility vacuole pigments that may appear red, purple, or blue according to pH. They belong to a parent class of molecules called flavonoids synthesized via the phenylpropanoid pathway....
    s, proanthocyanidin
    Proanthocyanidin

    Proanthocyanidin is a class of flavanols. Proanthocyanidins are essentially polymer chains of flavonoids such as catechins. One was discovered in 1936 by Professor Jacques Masquelier and called Vitamin P, although this name did not gain official category status and has since fallen out of usage....
    s, resveratrol
    Resveratrol

    Resveratrol is a phytoalexin produced naturally by several plants when under attack by pathogens such as bacteria or fungi. Resveratrol has also been produced by chemical synthesis and is sold as a nutritional supplement derived primarily from Japanese knotweed....
    , flavonols, and tannin
    Tannin

    Tannins are astringent, bitter plant polyphenols that either bind and Precipitation or shrink proteins. The astringency from the tannins is what causes the dry and puckery feeling in the mouth following the consumption of red wine or an unripened fruit....
    s inhibit mechanisms of cancer
    Cancer

    Cancer is a class of diseases in which a group of cell display uncontrolled growth , invasion , and sometimes metastasis . These three malignant properties of cancers differentiate them from benign tumors, which are self-limited, do not invade or metastasize....
     cell development and inflammation
    Inflammation

    Inflammation is the complex biological response of Blood vessel tissues to harmful stimuli, such as pathogens, damaged cells, or irritants. It is a protective attempt by the organism to remove the injurious stimuli as well as initiate the healing process for the tissue....
     in vitro
    In vitro

    In vitro refers to the technique of performing a given procedure in a controlled environment outside of a living organism. Some may argue that in vitro refers to a process that is created in a "test tube"; however, Robert Kail and John Cavanaugh on page 58 in the 4th edition of Human Development: A Life-Span View cite that in fact th...
    . Similar to red grape
    Grape

    File:Table grapes on white.jpgA grape is the non-Climacteric #In_botany fruit that grows on the Perennial plant and deciduous woody vines of the genus Vitis....
    , some blueberry species contain in their skins significant levels of resveratrol, a phytochemical
    Phytochemical

    Phytochemicals are plant-derived chemical compounds under scientific research for their potential health-promoting properties. Phytochemicals are non-essential nutrients, but still they have been scientifically confirmed as being important to human health....
    .

    Although most studies below were conducted using the highbush cultivar
    Cultivar

    A cultivar is a cultivated plant that has been selected and given a unique name because of its decorative or useful characteristics; it is usually distinct from similar plants and when Plant propagation it retains those characteristics....
     of blueberries (V. corymbosum), content of polyphenol antioxidants and anthocyanins in lowbush (wild) blueberries (V. angustifolium) exceeds values found in highbush species.

    At a 2007 symposium on berry health benefits were reports showing consumption of blueberries (and similar berry fruits including cranberries
    Cranberry

    Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the genus Vaccinium subgenus Oxycoccos, or in some treatments, in the distinct genus Oxycoccos....
    ) may alleviate the cognitive decline occurring in Alzheimer's disease
    Alzheimer's disease

    Alzheimer's disease , also called Alzheimer disease, Senile Dementia of the Alzheimer Type or simply Alzheimer's, is the most common form of dementia....
     and other conditions of aging.

    Feeding blueberries to animals lowers brain
    Brain

    The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
     damage in experimental stroke
    Stroke

    A stroke is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to a disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. According to the National Stroke Association, a "stroke" occurs when a blood clot blocks and artery or a blood vessel breaks, interrupting blood flow to an area of the brain....
    . Research at Rutgers has also shown that blueberries may help prevent urinary tract infections.

    Other animal studies found that blueberry consumption lowered cholesterol
    Cholesterol

    Cholesterol is a lipidic, waxy alcohol found in the cell membranes and transported in the blood plasma of all animals. It is an essential component of mammalian cell membranes where it is required to establish proper membrane permeability and membrane fluidity....
     and total blood lipid
    Lipid

    Lipids are broadly defined as any fat-soluble , naturally-occurring molecule, such as fats, oils, waxes, cholesterol, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins , monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others....
     levels, possibly affecting symptoms of heart disease
    Heart disease

    Heart disease is an umbrella term for a variety for different diseases affecting the heart. As of 2007, it is the leading cause of death in the United States, England, Canada and Wales, killing one person every 34 seconds in the United States alone....
    . Additional research showed that blueberry consumption in rats altered glycosaminoglycans which are vascular
    Vascular tissue

    Vascular tissue is a complex conducting tissue , formed of more than one cell type, found in vascular plants. The primary components of vascular tissue are the xylem and phloem....
     cell components affecting control of blood pressure
    Blood pressure

    Blood pressure is the pressure exerted by circulating blood on the walls of blood vessels, and constitutes one of the principal vital signs. The pressure of the circulating blood decreases as it moves away from the heart through artery and capillary, and toward the heart through veins....
    .

    Further reading

    • Clayton-Greene, K.: Web page titled "The Blueberry Industry in Australia: An Overview" a summary of an at the Web site for the International Society for Horticultural Science. The article appears to have been written in the 1990s, accessed August 24, 2006.
    • Gain, 2005: "USDA Foreign Agricultural Service: GAIN Report: Global Agriculture Information Network", January 12, 2005, accessed August 24, 2006
    • Gaskell, Mark. "Strategies for Off-Season Blueberry Production on Coastal California Small Farms," an article in "Central Coast Agriculture Highlights" a newsletter published by the University of California Cooperative Extension, February 2006 issue, page 2, accessed August 24, 2006.
    • Nauman, W.D. Web page titled "Overview of the Vaccinium Industry in Western Europe," a summary of an article by W.D. Naumann presented at the Fifth International Symposium on Vaccinium Culture and published in July 1993, from the Web site of the International Society for Horticultural Science, accessed August 24, 2006.*University of California Cooperative Extension (2006). (pdf file) an article by Mark Gaskell in Central Coast Agriculture Highlights newsletter. Accessed August 24, 2006.*
    • (FAO)


    External links