Why Are Blueberries Singin’ The Blues?
Blume Honey Water delves into the history and current state of the North American wild blueberry.
The history of wild blueberries is actually quite fascinating. They are a recognizable berry that grows on low bushes throughout the continents of North and South America. Blueberries are a powerhouse superfood with incredible properties for health and healing...but they’re under some threat.
Wild blueberries grow in abundance in North America along the Northeastern corridor of the U.S. and in neighboring Canada. Wild blueberries grow in thousands of acres of land naturally. For those living locally to the blueberry patches, they choose to voluntarily help harvest the bounty each year...which is often a taxing endeavour.
Most wild blueberry farms are still family-owned today and there is a long history of families protecting and boosting this wild crop. But before those acres of wild blueberries were anyone’s, they were everyone’s.
Indigenous people groups harvested the fruits of blueberry bushes for a range of uses: from foods to medicinal purposes. Thanks to Wild Blueberries for this history of the sweet, colorful fruit.
Wild Blueberries emerged on the desolate plain, aptly called The Barrens of Maine, Eastern Canada and Quebec, following the retreat of the glaciers more than 10,000 years ago.
Unlike regular blueberries, wild blueberries are not planted. Instead, they are indigenous and spread naturally where the winds pollinate them, with thousands of genetically different varieties in every field.
The Wabanaki tribes of Maine and Canada were among the first humans to use wild blueberries, both fresh and dried, for their flavor, nutrition and healing qualities.
Wild blueberries have never been hybridized or genetically modified to enhance or alter their naturally-occurring characteristics.
WHAT PUTS THE WILD IN WILD BLUEBERRIES?
Wild Child Cultivated blueberries take careful planning and planting, whereas wild blueberries grow naturally in fields and rocky hills called barrens. No one plants wild blueberries; they’ve grown naturally for thousands of years. Because wild blueberries grow on their own, they are a low-maintenance crop. Field owners are hands-off throughout most of the growing season, although they often introduce bees to naturally pollinate the bushes. Wild blueberries have a two-year crop cycle, so owners prune fields every other year with rotary mowers.
Uniquely Wild Style Cultivated blueberries are fairly uniform in their size, color and taste. Wild blueberries are generally much smaller in size than cultivated blueberries. They also vary in color from different shades of blue to almost black. Taste varies from very sweet to not-so-sweet.
The Wild Second Cousins Those differences in taste, color and size are largely due to genetic diversity. As mentioned before, wild blueberries grow 100% wild – not planted or tampered with by people. So, wild blueberries have no genetic engineering which produces a very diverse crop. The uniformity of cultivated blueberries results from selective breeding and farming practices.
Wild Size Matters When you think of a blueberry bush, you’re probably thinking of a cultivated blueberry bush. They stand in straight rows and tower over the average person. These are referred to as “highbush.” Wild blueberry bushes are referred to as “lowbush.” They spread low and wide through runners, covering fields in a random manner. Harvesters have to kneel down to reach them.
Wilding Way Because of the lowbush height and often rocky terrain, many wild blueberry fields cannot be harvested with traditional machinery, and must be hand-harvested. Hand-harvesters use rakes to scoop berries off the bushes, working in an upward motion. These rakes are specifically engineered for wild blueberry harvest. The harvest typically begins in late July and ends in early September.
Wildly Superior Superpowers For the consumer, the most notable difference between wild and cultivated blueberries probably lies in nutritional content. Not only can you get more fruit servings per pound from the smaller, wild berries, you also get more nutrition. The official Wild Blueberries organization calls the wild-grown blueberry the “blueberriest blueberry” and the “better blueberry.” According to their website, wild blueberries have 2x the antioxidants of cultivated blueberries, thanks to a higher concentration in the flavonoid anthocyanin.
The University of Maine Cooperative Extension has excellent information about the wild blueberries of their region. It is worthy to note, that the native wild blueberry business with recent high yields are in trouble, as the berries are commercially harvested mainly in Maine and are not as well-known. Passamaquoddy Wild Blueberry Co. of Maine is responsible for the tribal blueberry operations. They have recently cut back in production from their fields and barrens. The wild variety is nearly impossible (costly) to transport fresh and, for export, are sold canned or frozen instead.
If you can obtain wild blueberries in any form, consider adding a wild blueberry pie, scones or muffins with dried berries to your meals in order to honor the blueberry’s rich culinary and medicinal history in the Americas.