Alaskan or Oval-leaf Blueberry
Vaccinium ovalifolium
Ripe blueberries on the Winner Creek Trail, Girdwood, AK
Leaves and twigs
Flower in bloom
Fall colors
This member of the blueberry family vaccinium grows in sub-arctic regions on both sides of the Pacific Ocean, from Japan and the Russian Far East across the entire subarctic region of North America. It can be found in most parts of Interior and Southcentral Alaska. Unlike its alpine and bog-based cousins, which grow quite close to the ground, this large woodland shrub has a spreading leaf structure and may reach over six feet high.
Alaskan blueberry is an important food source for birds and grazing herbivores, as well as for omnivores like bears and humans. Its berries have many uses, including pies, jellies or jams, and syrups; they can be eaten fresh, frozen, dried, or dehydrated.
Works Cited
Image Credits
Images have been cropped and resized
Ripe berries
🅭 2006 Kristof Zyskowski & Yulia Bereshpolova, CC BY 2.0
Leaf and twig structure
🅭2008 Walter Siegmund, CC BY-SA 3.0
Flower in bloom
🅭2008 Walter Siegmund, CC BY-SA 3.0
Fall foliage
🅭2012 Western Arctic National Parklands, CC BY 2.0
