Rabbiteye blueberry
Encyclopedia
Rabbiteye Blueberry is a species of blueberry
native to the Southeastern
United States
, from North Carolina
south to Florida
and west to Texas
. Other common names include Southern Highbush Blueberry, Southern Black Blueberry, and Smallflower
shrub
growing to 3 to 6 inches tall and with up to a 3 foot spread. The leaves
are spirally arranged, oblanceolate to narrow elliptic, 3 inches long and start out red-bronze in the spring only to develop into a dark-green. The flower
s are white, bell-shaped, 5 mm long. The fruit
is a berry 5 mm diameter, dark blue to black, bloomed pale blue-gray by a thin wax coating.
each other. Honeybees are inefficient pollinator
s, and carpenter bee
s frequently cut the corollas to rob nectar
without pollinating
the flowers. Rabbiteyes do best when pollinated by buzz pollination
by bees, such as the native southeastern blueberry bee, Habropoda laboriosa
.
, the berries can handle temperatures as low as 10 degrees Fahrenheit. The plants can mature to the height of 3 to 6 feet with a width of up to 3 feet. The plant has little insect or disease problems, however birds and squirrels are prone to eating them.
It is grown as an ornamental plant
for its fall colors, typically bright orange or red, and for it's edible properties.
Blueberry
Blueberries are flowering plants of the genus Vaccinium with dark-blue berries and are perennial...
native to the Southeastern
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, from North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
south to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and west to Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
. Other common names include Southern Highbush Blueberry, Southern Black Blueberry, and Smallflower
Description
Vaccinium virgatum is a deciduousDeciduous
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...
shrub
Shrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
growing to 3 to 6 inches tall and with up to a 3 foot spread. The leaves
Leaf
A leaf is an organ of a vascular plant, as defined in botanical terms, and in particular in plant morphology. Foliage is a mass noun that refers to leaves as a feature of plants....
are spirally arranged, oblanceolate to narrow elliptic, 3 inches long and start out red-bronze in the spring only to develop into a dark-green. The flower
Flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to effect reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism for the union of sperm with eggs...
s are white, bell-shaped, 5 mm long. The fruit
Fruit
In broad terms, a fruit is a structure of a plant that contains its seeds.The term has different meanings dependent on context. In non-technical usage, such as food preparation, fruit normally means the fleshy seed-associated structures of certain plants that are sweet and edible in the raw state,...
is a berry 5 mm diameter, dark blue to black, bloomed pale blue-gray by a thin wax coating.
Characteristics
Rabbiteye blueberries are self infertile and must have two or more varieties to pollenizePollenizer
A pollenizer or polleniser, sometimes pollinizer or polliniser is a plant that provides pollen.In American English, the words pollenizer and pollinator are often confused: A pollinator is the biotic agent that moves the pollen, such as bees, moths, bats, and birds...
each other. Honeybees are inefficient pollinator
Pollinator
A pollinator is the biotic agent that moves pollen from the male anthers of a flower to the female stigma of a flower to accomplish fertilization or syngamy of the female gamete in the ovule of the flower by the male gamete from the pollen grain...
s, and carpenter bee
Carpenter bee
Carpenter bees are large, hairy bees distributed worldwide. There are some 500 species of carpenter bee in 31 subgenera...
s frequently cut the corollas to rob nectar
Nectar robbing
Nectar robbing refers to the act by an animal, typically an insect or a bird, of removing nectar from a flowering plant, most often by drilling a hole in the corolla. In this way animals without morphological adaptations required by the structure of the flower may access nectar...
without pollinating
Pollination
Pollination is the process by which pollen is transferred in plants, thereby enabling fertilisation and sexual reproduction. Pollen grains transport the male gametes to where the female gamete are contained within the carpel; in gymnosperms the pollen is directly applied to the ovule itself...
the flowers. Rabbiteyes do best when pollinated by buzz pollination
Buzz pollination
Sonication or buzz pollination is a technique used by some bees to release pollen which is more or less firmly held by the anthers, which makes pollination more efficient. The anther of buzz-pollinated species of plants is typically tubular, with an opening at only one end, and the pollen is inside...
by bees, such as the native southeastern blueberry bee, Habropoda laboriosa
Habropoda laboriosa
The southeastern blueberry bee, Habropoda laboriosa, is a native bee in the family Apidae in the United States. It is regarded as the most efficient pollinator of southern rabbiteye blueberries, as the flowers require buzz pollination, and H. laboriosa is one of the few bees that exhibit this...
.
Cultivation
It grows best on acid soil and is subject to few pests and diseases. This blueberry is not self-fruitful, so two compatible varieties should be planted next to each other to maintain growth and fruiting. If maintained with mulchingMulch
In agriculture and gardening, is a protective cover placed over the soil to retain moisture, reduce erosion, provide nutrients, and suppress weed growth and seed germination. Mulching in gardens and landscaping mimics the leaf cover that is found on forest floors....
, the berries can handle temperatures as low as 10 degrees Fahrenheit. The plants can mature to the height of 3 to 6 feet with a width of up to 3 feet. The plant has little insect or disease problems, however birds and squirrels are prone to eating them.
It is grown as an ornamental plant
Ornamental plant
Ornamental plants are plants that are grown for decorative purposes in gardens and landscape design projects, as house plants, for cut flowers and specimen display...
for its fall colors, typically bright orange or red, and for it's edible properties.