VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Vaccinium myrtilloides | Velvetleaf Blueberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Browse:  White-tailed deer and eastern cottontail browse the leaves and
twigs of velvetleaf blueberry [90].  In many parts of the East, deer
browse shoots or twigs during the fall and winter months [5,75].
Domestic sheep however, generally ignore velvetleaf blueberry [90].

Fruit:  The wild turkey, gray catbird, band-tailed pigeon, ring-necked
pheasant, and quails, ptarmigans, towhees, spruce, ruffed, blue, and
sharp-tailed grouse all feed on Vaccinium fruit [54,88,91].  In central
Pennsylvania, grouse eat large numbers of velvetleaf blueberry flower
buds in winter [75].  The American robin, American crow, bluebirds, and
many other small birds consume velvetleaf blueberry fruit [5,76,90].

The white-tailed deer, black bear, red fox, porcupine, raccoon, mice,
and chipmunks all readily feed on the fruit of velvetleaf blueberry
[76,90].  Mammals such as the pika, white-footed mouse, gray fox, ground
squirrels, deer mice, squirrels, and skunks eat large quantities of
Vaccinium berries [54,91].  In parts of Minnesota and Wisconsin, the
reproductive success of black bears is reduced in years of Vaccinium
crop failure [70].


PALATABILITY : 
Velvetleaf blueberry fruit is highly palatable to a wide variety of
birds and mammals.  Specific palatability of berries varies with the
clone [90].  Browse appears to be of relatively low palatability to most
big game species and to domestic livestock.


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Browse:  Blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) foliage is relatively high in
carotene, manganese, and energy content [18,35,90].  Nitrogen content of
velvetleaf blueberry generally declines through the growing season
whereas calcium and magnesium levels increase [90].  Plants accumulate
nitrogen for winter, but apparently do not store reserves of protein
[50].  Nutrient content of mature velvetleaf blueberry foliage is as
follows [90]:

 element      percent dry weight     element     micrograms/gram

 N            1.5-2.00                 Fe           20-192
 P            0.09-0.21                Mn          202-2,177 
 K            0.24-0.52                B            16-54
 Ca           0.38-0.67
 Mg           0.10-0.31

Fruit:  Blueberry fruits are sweet and contain high concentrations of
both mono- and di-saccharides [82].  Berries are rich in vitamin C,
carbohydrates, and energy content but low in fats [69,92].  The nutrient
value of Vaccinium berries from Pennsylvania is documented below [92].

          crude    ether    crude    total    N-free    avail.    lignin
          protein  extract  fiber    ash      extract   protein

%dry wt.  4.19     3.80     9.67     1.44     80.90     2.75      13.85
% of fruit .63      .56     1.42      .21     11.88      .50       2.04

             cellulose    tannin    Ca     Mg    P    moisture

%dry wt.       7.97        1.28     0.4   .07   .07      -
% of fruit     1.17         .19      .01  .01   .01     85.3

Flowers:  Nectar of velvetleaf blueberry flowers contains more sucrose
than do the flowers of low sweet blueberry [94].


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Species within the Vaccinium genus can be propagated from hardwood
cuttings or by seed.  Blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) seedlings grown in the
greenhouse can be transplanted onto favorable sites 6 to 7 weeks after
emergence.  Germination of velvetleaf blueberry is generally best in 1:1
sand-peat mixtures at a pH of 4.5 [90].  Seed collection and storage
techniques have been considered in detail [15].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
The sweet, tart or "pleasantly acid" [76,86] fruit of velvetleaf
blueberry is eaten fresh or used in pies, pastries, jam, and ice cream
[5].  Large numbers of recreationists seek out and harvest these berries
throughout the Great Lakes Region [42,90].  During the 1970's,
approximately 20 percent of the total visitor hours were dedicated to
blueberry picking in several National Forests of northern Minnesota.  By
1980, this amount had climbed to 30 percent in some locations [42].

Vaccinium berries were traditionally an important food source for many
native American peoples [76].  The Cree harvested velvetleaf blueberries
in parts of western North America [88].

Velvetleaf blueberry grows with low sweet blueberry in commercial
blueberry fields of the Northeast [1,59].  In some areas, velvetleaf
blueberry may represent a significant part of the commercial crop,
particularly in fields derived from woodlands [33,88].  However, it only
accounts for "commercially viable" quantities in New Brunswick and
Maine.  More than 4,400,000 pounds (2 million kg) of blueberry fruit is
harvested annually in New Brunswick, of which 30 percent is velvetleaf
blueberry.  Most commercially grown fruit is processed as pie filling or
is used in muffin mixes [90].  Lesser amounts are used to make wine,
juice, or freezed-dried products [5].

The cold-hardy velvetleaf blueberry may have potential for breeding
blueberry strains suited to northern climates [19].  Its affinity for
mineral soil also suggests that it may be useful for breeding plants
adapted to upland sites [22,44].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Chemical control:  Blueberries (Vaccinium spp.) exhibit variable
susceptibility to herbicides such as 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, glyphosate,
karbutilate, and picloram [8].  Various herbicides, including
dichlorprop, picloram, 2,4-D, and glyphosate have been applied to
velvetleaf blueberry to facilitate conifer release [26,72].  Plants are
resistant to Asulam and Terbacil, although Dicamba and 2,4-D may reduce
shoot numbers during the year after treatment.  However, rhizomes may be
undamaged by herbicides and often resume growth during the second year
after treatment [90].  The response of velvetleaf blueberry to various
herbicides has been documented [72,90].

Mechanical treatment:  In northeastern Minnesota, mechanically clipped
velvetleaf blueberry plants produced flower bud numbers equal to those
on unpruned plants.  Plants pruned mechanically, or by fire, exhibited
increases in stem numbers over unpruned controls.  The effects of
fertilizer and mulch on pruned plants has been examined in detail.
Application of fertilizer may significantly increase flower bud numbers
on clipped individuals but typically reduces flower bud development on
unpruned plants.  Unpruned plants generally exhibit increased stem
growth after fertilizer application, but fertilization has little effect
on mechanically pruned plants [76].  Mulch does not generally increase
flower bud numbers or vegetative growth of pruned plants.  Its use
should be avoided on recently pruned velvetleaf blueberry [76].

Environmental considerations:  In a number of recent studies, chemically
treated velvetleaf blueberry plants have been found to produce fruit
which exceeds permissible levels of herbicides [26,72].  In a
northeastern Ontario study, 50 percent of fruit tested was found to
exceed FDA safety standards.  Much of the affected fruit grew in easily
accessible areas, such as along highway right-of-ways.  Possible human
health risks are unknown, but approximately 0.3 percent of all wild
blueberries and red raspberries (Rubus idaeus) in Ontario are treated
annually with herbicides [26].

In many parts of the East, widespread use of insecticides has decimated
populations of wild bees which formerly pollinated blueberry fields.  In
some locations, it is now necessary to supplement natural pollinators
with honey bees to ensure adequate fruit set in commercially managed
fields [58].

Velvetleaf blueberry is very sensitive to sulfur dioxide pollution and
may be a useful indicator for monitoring acid rain [90].

Commercial propagation:  Numerous cultivation techniques have been
applied to commercially managed blueberry fields [76,98].  These include
applying mulch, fertilizer, or herbicides, and pruning with fire or
mechanical means [see FIRE MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS].  Various
herbicides can be used to control plants such as kalmia (Kalmia
angustifolia) and little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium) which
commonly compete with velvetleaf blueberry in commercially managed berry
fields [30,95].  Disease and insects can greatly reduce fruit yields
under certain circumstances.  Because clones differ genetically in their
resistance to disease, selective breeding has been used to develop
resistant strains [59].  In commercial blueberry fields containing both
velvetleaf and low sweet blueberry, yields are often lower than in
fields made up of only low sweet blueberry.  Cross pollination
apparently results in reduced fruit set [1].

Berry production:  Fruit production in velvetleaf blueberry fluctuates
annually according to the genetics of the individual clone, weather
conditions, and insect availability [5,94].  However, fruit production
is often good [16] and nearly all berries contain some viable seed [90].
Pollinators are required for good fruit set [94] and dry, warm weather
during flowering generally results in more active insect pollinators and
better fruit set.  Late spring frosts can greatly reduce fruit
production [90].  In Newfoundland, reduced fruit production has been
correlated with heavy June precipitation and in Nova Scotia, warm
temperatures and ample sunlight enhanced fruit yields [31].  Fruit
production of velvetleaf blueberry typically declines as clones age
[75].  Production often peaks 10 to 20 years after fire, just prior to
canopy closure [90].

Damage:  Plants may be damaged by cold winter temperatures.  Shrubs are
often killed to ground level in the absence of a protective snow cover.
Spring frost damage reportedly occurs at 30 degrees F (-1 degree C) and
may be "complete" at 14 degrees F (-10 degrees C) [90].

Livestock:  Ericaceous shrubs such as velvetleaf blueberry tend to
increase in response to heavy livestock grazing [28].

Wildlife considerations:  Blueberries are an extremely important food
source for bears.  In many areas, bear-human conflicts are most likely
to occur during years of Vaccinium berry crop failure [55,70].  Both
black and grizzly bears typically exploit areas with dense
concentrations of berries.  The habitat value of blueberry shrubfields
to grizzly bears can be increased by permanent, or at least seasonal
road closures, by coordinating timber harvest dates to have minimal
impact on habitat use patterns, and by considering the cumulative
effects of habitat modification across a broad area.  In general, site
preparation should include minimizing soil compaction, using cooler
broadcast burns rather than hot burns, or by eliminating site
preparation entirely wherever possible.  Grizzly use is favored where
hiding cover is retained by treating small, irregular patches instead of
large contiguous areas, and by leaving stringers of timber within larger
cuts [96].

Related categories for Species: Vaccinium myrtilloides | Velvetleaf Blueberry