Chippewa Blueberry vs Bilberry - TreeTime.ca

Chippewa Blueberry vs Bilberry

Vaccinium x Chippewa

Vaccinium myrtillus

CUSTOM GROW

Chippewa Blueberry
Bilberry

Chippewa Blueberry is the perfect shrub for attracting birds and butterflies. Incredibly cold-hardy, the Chippewa Blueberry is an upright shrub making it easy for harvesting. Known for producing high yields of large blue-colored berries, this blueberry is a favourite for fresh eating, baking, and preserves. As with all blueberries, the Chippewa needs soil with a low pH and high acidity.

Bilberry is a native perennial shrub valued for its small, blue-black berries that ripen in mid to late summer. The berries resemble blueberries but have a richer, more tart, and intense flavor. They have long been used for fresh eating, baking, and preserves, while also providing food for birds and mammals. In spring, its delicate pinkish flowers attract bees and other pollinators.

Growing low to the ground, Bilberry forms spreading colonies that create dense understory cover. This growth habit provides food and shelter for wildlife, and its foliage adds seasonal interest by turning red to purple in autumn. With its adaptability and ecological benefits, Bilberry is well-suited for naturalization, ecological restoration, and pollinator gardens.

Chippewa Blueberry Quick Facts

Bilberry Quick Facts

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Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Height: 0.3 m (1.0 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: slow
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: low growing, clump-forming
Spreading: rhizomes - medium, seeds - medium
Suckering: medium
Maintenance: medium


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


Native to: AB, BC
Other Names: chippewa half high blueberry, half high blueberry
Other Names: common bilberry, dwarf bilberry, low bilberry, myrtille, myrtle blueberry, myrtle whortleberry, whortleberry