VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Vaccinium ovalifolium | Ovalleaf Huckleberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
Browse:  Ovalleaf huckleberry provides at least some browse for elk,
deer, and mountain goats [26].  On the Olympic Peninsula of Washington,
it is considered a moderately important elk browse [50].  In many areas,
elk feed on the leaves and twigs year-round, but this shrub is generally
of greatest importance during winter and summer [59].  In parts of
eastern North America, deer browse buds and tender young twigs in early
spring, but use is often heaviest in winter [8].  In western Washington,
ovalleaf huckleberry is a preferred browse of black-tailed deer, with
greatest utilization reported in April, May, and October1w.  This food
source may be unavailable for winter use wherever foliage is heavily
browsed in summer [7].  Livestock use of ovalleaf huckleberry appears
limited although domestic sheep and goats feed on this shrub in some
locations [14,65].

Fruit:  Fruits of ovalleaf huckleberry are eaten by many birds and
mammals [26,29].  In Alaska, both leaves and berries are important fall
foods of the spruce grouse [17].  The scarlet tanager, thrushes,
thrashers, towhees, ptarmigans, ring-necked pheasant, ruffed, blue, and
sharp-tailed grouse all consume huckleberry (Vaccinium spp.) fruit
[45,65].  Many mammals including chipmunks, black bear, red fox, skunks,
squirrels, gray fox, and raccoon also eat Vaccinium berries [45,65].
Ovalleaf huckleberry fruit is an important grizzly bear food in parts of
British Columbia [3,46].


PALATABILITY : 
Palatability of ovalleaf huckleberry browse apparently varies with site
[7] and seasonal development.  However, overall palatability to big game
is generally described as moderate [28].  It is preferred by
black-tailed deer in parts of western Washington during the winter
months [7] and tender buds and twigs are readily consumed by
white-tailed deer during early spring or late winter in parts of the
East [8].  Palatability of ovalleaf huckleberry browse to elk in
Washington is rated as good [59].  Fruit is preferred by many birds and
mammals.


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Browse:  Huckleberry (Vaccinium spp.) foliage is relatively high in
carotene, manganese, and energy content [12,30].  The nutrient content
of ovalleaf huckleberry browse varies seasonally.  A composite analysis
of ovalleaf and red huckleberry (V. parvifolium) browse in western
Washington revealed the following values [7]:

crude      ether     crude    N-free    total    Ca       K      PO4
protein    extract   fiber    extract   ash                     
                                (percent)

7.57       3.56      35.71    46.90     4.38     1.032    0.535  0.434

Fruit:  Fruits of Vaccinium spp. are sweet and contain high
concentrations of both mono- and di-saccharides [62].  Berries are rich
in vitamin C and energy content but contain little fat [36,55].


COVER VALUE : 
Ovalleaf huckleberry presumably provides cover for a variety of wildlife
species.  Taller plants, which grow in forest openings, may serve as
favorable hiding places for large mammals.


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Species within the genus Vaccinium can be propagated from hardwood
cuttings or by seed.  Ovalleaf huckleberry averages 1,606,200 cleaned
seeds per pound (3,538/g).  Seedlings grown in the greenhouse can be
transplanted 6 to 7 weeks after emergence.  Seed collection and storage
techniques have been examined in detail [11].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Berries of ovalleaf huckleberry are tart but flavorful [29,35].  Fruit
is eaten fresh, cooked, or dried [28,29,63].  Berries also make
excellent jelly and wine [28,31].  Fruit of the ovalleaf and Alaska
huckleberries are the most commonly gathered wild berries along the
Pacific Coast of Alaska [2].  Approximately 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of fruit
can be harvested within a 10-minute period [70].

The ovalleaf huckleberry was traditionally an important food source for
Native peoples of present-day Alaska and British Columbia [63,70].
Berries were eaten fresh or preserved for winter use [70].  Preserved
fruit provided a good source of vitamin C during the winter months.

Ovalleaf huckleberry was first cultivated in 1880 [11].  Many species of
huckleberries (Vaccinium spp.) have value as ornamentals or as
fruit-producers in backyard gardens.  However, Schultz [58] reports that
ovalleaf huckleberry does not appear well-suited for horticultural
breeding purposes.


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Chemical control:  Huckleberries (Vaccinium spp.) exhibit variable
susceptibility to herbicides such as 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, glyphosate,
karbutilate, and picloram [6].

Timber harvest:  Ovalleaf huckleberry commonly persists on cutover sites
[24,42].  On thinned stands in southeastern Alaska, ovalleaf huckleberry
seedlings were scattered where trees were spaced at 7.9 by 7.9 foot (2.4
x 2.4 m) intervals [26].  However, where trees were spaced at 16.5 by
16.5 foot (4.9 x 4.9 m) intervals, ovalleaf huckleberry seedlings were
much more abundant and produced flowers [26].

Wildlife:  Huckleberries are an extremely important food source for
grizzly bears [44].  Both black and grizzly bears typically exploit
areas with dense concentrations of berries.  The habitat value of
huckleberry 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 slash burns, or by
eliminating site preparation entirely wherever possible.  Grizzly use
can be 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 [68].

Seasonal trail closures have been implemented in major ovalleaf or blue
huckleberry fields in British Columbia's Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park
in an attempt to reduce the likelihood of hiker-grizzly encounters [46].
In many areas, bear-human conflicts are much more likely to occur during
years of huckleberry crop failure [44,56] as wider-ranging hungry bears
encounter recreationists or wildland residents.  Damage to crops and
beehives, and livestock losses also typically increase during poor
huckleberry years [56].

Related categories for Species: Vaccinium ovalifolium | Ovalleaf Huckleberry