HEALTHY CORNER

            With flavors that range from mildly sweet (cultivated) to tart and tangy (wild), blueberries are nutritional stars bursting with nutrition and flavor while being very low in calories.

Blueberries are the fruits of a shrub that belong to the heath (Ericaceae) family whose other members include the cranberry and bilberry as well as the azalea, mountain laurel, and rhododendron. Blueberries grow in clusters and range in size from that of a small pea to a marble. They are deep in color, ranging from blue to maroon to purple-black, and feature a white-gray waxy "bloom" that covers the berry's surface and serves as a protective coat. The skin surrounds a semi-transparent flesh that encases tiny seeds. Blueberries are at their best from May through October when they are in season.

From a botanical perspective, all blueberries belong not only to the Ericaceae family of plants but also to the Vaccinium genus. Within this Vaccinium genus, however, are three very interesting groups of blueberries!

Highbush Blueberries: These species are the most commonly cultivated forms of blueberries and the type we see most often in the grocery store. Included here are northern and southern highbush, which can grow as high as 12 feet in height in their native (uncultivated) state but when cultivated usually stay within a range of 4-7 feet. Highbush blueberries are also the kind you're most likely to find available for purchase at your local garden stores and plant nurseries. Cultivated highbush blueberries have often been hybridized to produce larger size berries, which U.S. consumers seem to prefer.

Lowbush Blueberries: These species are commonly referred to as "wild blueberries." In their native state, they typically grow less than 2 feet in height and often stay even lower, at 8-12 inches from the ground. Lowbush species produce berries of a smaller size than highbush and even though they can be found growing wild in many parts of the U.S. are not commonly found in supermarkets.

Rabbiteye Blueberries: These species are native to the southern U.S. and can grow up to 20 feet in height in their native state. They are less frequently cultivated than highbush blueberries, but when cultivated, the plant usually grows to heights of 4-10 feet.

All types of blueberries described above have found their way into agricultural practices around the world and are part of cuisines from Asia to the Mediterranean. Some varieties were originally transported to Europe and Asia from North America, but native varieties of blueberries can be found on all three continents.