Blueberry, a scientific name of blueberry, belongs to the deciduous shrub of Vaccinium of Ericaceae. It originated from North America, Scotland, Russia and the Daxing 'an Mountains in China. It is a wild plant with strong cold tolerance and can resist the severe cold of 0.50C. Blueberry has always been favored by human beings. It has been eaten for centuries and is one of the five healthy fruits recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations ( FAO ). Because of its delicate pulp, sweet and sour fruit flavor and unique flavor, it is known as " the king of berries".
Blueberry Leaves alternate, high, semi-high and low clumps of blueberries shed their leaves before winter, rabbit eyes are evergreen, and leaves can remain on the tree for 2 - 3 years. The leaf size ranges from 0.7~3.5 cm for dwarf blueberries to 8cm for high blueberries, with different lengths. The most common leaf shape is oval. Most species have villi on the back of leaves, and some species have villi on flowers and fruits, but dwarf blueberry leaves have little villi.
The root system has no root hairs and has low absorption capacity. Blueberry roots are fine and fibrous, and the diameter of fine roots is 50~75μm before branching. Almost all the fine roots of blueberries are parasitized by endophytic mycorrhizal fungi, thus overcoming the difficulty in absorbing water and nutrients caused by the absence of root hairs in blueberry roots. Studies have proved that mycorrhizal fungi are beneficial to blueberry growth.
The high-yield blueberry is mainly derived from the selection and breeding of wild species of and hybrids (VacciniumcorymbosumL).
It is naturally distributed in North America. It is not resistant to early and is suitable for being born on humid soil. It forms communities in swamps, streams, humid sand and places with groundwater leakage at the foothills.
The northern high clump blueberry is the earliest cultivated species. It is a variant of wild blueberry ( V.corymbosumL ) and different horticultural varieties produced by interspecific hybridization. This kind of blueberry is the one with the highest economic value among all blueberry varieties. At present, nearly 100 varieties have been used in production. - banshu is about 1~2m high and has good fruit quality. it is a widely cultivated species. North high clump blueberry likes cold climate and has strong cold resistance. some varieties can resist a low temperature of 30~- 35C, and the dormancy period needs a long time of low temperature. generally, the cold temperature requirement of < 7.2C is about 800 - 1200 hours, and some varieties need more than 600 hours. Attention should be paid to the fact that the soil must be acidic. the PH value of soil suitable for growth is between 4.3 and 5.2. most varieties with PH>5.5 show poor growth performance.
Dwarf blueberries are also called wild blueberries. Currently, the main blueberry with high economic value is V angustifolium Aiton and its variants.
The plant height is 5~40cm, the plant clump is large and dense, and the tree shape is creeping. Leaves and branchlets glabrous. The leaves are long and narrow. Corolla white with red stripes. The fruit is small, weighing about 0.28g on average, round, light blue, glossy and sweet. Flowering period: April to may. Fruit ripens earlier than blueberry with similar flavor. Generally, it matures from July to August, but the harvest period in the northernmost part can last until September. Dwarf blueberries mainly rely on underground stems to propagate and spread. Regular burning can rejuvenate their communities.
Dwarf blueberries are naturally distributed in Maine to Minnesota and parts of eastern Canada in the northeastern United States. They are commonly distributed on open, dry rocky or sandy highlands, sometimes forming a single vegetation community, and often distributed on abandoned hay fields. When forests are cut down or burned down, they naturally spread. Artificial cultivation has low yield and poor economic benefits. It still relies on the cultivation and utilization of wild resources. Fruits are mainly used as raw materials for food processing and have extremely high economic value. Most dwarf blueberries require a cold temperature of < 7.2C, which is generally more than 1000 hours.
The semi-high blueberry cluster is obtained by hybridization between the northern high blueberry cluster ( V.corymbosumL ) and the wild species of dwarf blueberry ( V.angustifolium, V. uliginosum, etc. ) in the United States and other places. The species combines the characteristics of dwarf blueberry plants, strong cold resistance and high blueberry fruit quality. the - bush height is 50~100cm, and the fruit is larger than that of dwarf blueberry, but smaller than that of high blueberry. it has strong cold resistance and can generally resist -35C low temperature. One of the most remarkable features is that it will not be frozen in cold areas covered with snow in winter. The dormancy period requires the cold temperature requirement of < 7.2C to be more than 1000 hours.