If you've grown up in North America, it's more than likely that you've spent a summer afternoon blueberry picking with your friends or family. You've probably spent hours focused on the task of finding the perfect blueberry, and you probably know the struggle between wanting to eat your blueberries along the way, but knowing your mom told you to put them in your basket for later. Unfortunately, even if all of these assumptions are true, you probably don't know that much about the blueberry, like how it originated or what the blueberry shrub looks like while in bloom.
Blueberries, whose scientific name is Vaccinium corymbosum, are one of the few North American fruit species that have been around since pre-colonial times, gathered and eaten by Native Americans. These blueberries, however, were different than the ones we eat today. They were the wild, also known as low bush variety. Today, most Americans eat high bush variety blueberries. This type of blueberry was domesticated in the early 20th century by Dr. Frederick Coville and Elizabeth White. Since then, scientists and farmers have improved the blueberry by selecting for larger, sweeter, and more colorful berries. Blueberries have evolved over time through artificial selection. Artificial selection is the breeding of plants and animals to produce desirable traits, in this case being larger, sweeter, and colorful, and is the process used to produce and cultivate every fruit and vegetable you see when walking through the super market.
Blueberries, whose scientific name is Vaccinium corymbosum, are one of the few North American fruit species that have been around since pre-colonial times, gathered and eaten by Native Americans. These blueberries, however, were different than the ones we eat today. They were the wild, also known as low bush variety. Today, most Americans eat high bush variety blueberries. This type of blueberry was domesticated in the early 20th century by Dr. Frederick Coville and Elizabeth White. Since then, scientists and farmers have improved the blueberry by selecting for larger, sweeter, and more colorful berries. Blueberries have evolved over time through artificial selection. Artificial selection is the breeding of plants and animals to produce desirable traits, in this case being larger, sweeter, and colorful, and is the process used to produce and cultivate every fruit and vegetable you see when walking through the super market.
Blueberry shrubs are most commonly found in North America. The shrub height varies from 10 centimeters to 13 feet. The leaves of the shrub are either deciduous or evergreen, ovate to lanceolate. Typically the blooming period in North America is May to late summer, but can vary amongst regions. While the blueberry shrub is blooming flowers emerge that are bell-shaped, white, pale pink or red, sometimes tinged greenish. Once the flower has turned into the blueberry it is time for the plant to be harvest. Traditionally blueberries were hand-picked with berry-picking rakes, but now farmers use machine harvesters that shake the fruit off the bush. The berries are then brought to a packing facility where they are packed and sold. Blueberries themselves are super valuable due to their reputation as a "super food". They get this name from their high levels of potassium vitamin C and antioxidants. Lucky for us, we have our very own blueberry shrub in Rand Park (pictured below)!
Grace Riggs and Alex Marsek
No comments:
Post a Comment