Lowbush Blueberry vs Bilberry - TreeTime.ca

Lowbush Blueberry vs Bilberry

Vaccinium angustifolium

Vaccinium myrtillus

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Lowbush Blueberry
Bilberry

Lowbush Blueberry, commonly known as the Wild Lowbush Blueberry, is often wild-harvested and thrives in low pH acidic soil. This early low-bush blueberry produces white and pink bell-shaped flowers in the spring. Its fruit is smaller in size than high bush blueberry plants and is more flavourful with an intense blueberry taste-masking it perfect for fresh eating, baking, and preserves.

Note: Blueberries require very specific soil conditions. They need well-drained soil with a pH between 4.5 and 5.0. If the starting pH of your soil is between 5.1 and 6.2 you can lower it by adding sulfur. We recommend against planting blueberries in soil with a starting pH greater than 6.2. Please do your own research before buying any blueberry plants.

American Black Currant is a native deciduous shrub known for its clusters of small black berries that ripen in mid-to-late summer. The berries are edible and have long been used for fresh eating, preserves, and baking. They provide food for birds and mammals, and their fragrant spring flowers attract bees and other pollinators.

American Black Currant’s foliage serves as a host plant for butterfly species such as the Green Comma and Gray Comma, and its dense branching offers cover for wildlife. The shrub has traditionally been planted in shelterbelts, riparian buffers, and restoration projects.

Lowbush Blueberry Quick Facts

Bilberry Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: slow
Life span: medium
Life span: medium
Growth form: low growing, clump-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - medium, seeds - medium
Suckering: none


Toxicity: leaves may be unsafe in high doses
Flowers: white, pink tinged, bell shaped
Flowers: white or pink, bell-shaped
Bloom time: summer
Berries: edible blue
Berries: round bluish-purple berries, edible
Flavor: sweet
Harvest: July
Harvest: late summer to early fall
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, PE
Native to: AB, BC
Other Names: late lowbush blueberry, late sweet blueberry, wild lowbush blueberry
Other Names: common bilberry, dwarf bilberry, low bilberry, myrtille, myrtle blueberry, myrtle whortleberry, whortleberry