Family
Ericaceae
Botanical Name
Vaccinium ovatum
Plant Common Name
California Huckleberry
General Description
Offering pretty pink-tinged white flowers in spring and early summer, tasty black fruits in fall, and attractive foliage year round, this upright broadleaf evergreen shrub from far western North America is a plant for all seasons.
The oval, leathery, finely toothed, dark green leaves are often red-tinted when young. The pendent clusters of small urn-shaped flowers attract hummingbirds and bees. Somewhat bitter at first, the dark blue to black fruits can be harvested and eaten by early fall, but sweeten after frosts. Birds and sometimes larger mammals will seek out and eat the berries.
Grow California huckleberry in moist, acidic, well-drained soil in full sun to full shade. It flowers and fruits more heavily in sun, and is taller and less dense in shade. Use it in mixed borders, hedges or containers in sunny locales, but as a tall screen or loose hedge in full shade. Give it afternoon shade in hot climates. Florists have high regard for the foliage in arrangements. Some forms of this shrub have larger and tastier fruit. Cultivar 'Thunderbird' has bluer and larger fruits and bright red-bronze new leaves.
Characteristics
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AHS Heat Zone
8 - 1
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USDA Hardiness Zone
7 - 9
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Sunset Zone
4, 5, 6, 7, 14, 15, 16, 17, 22, 23, 24
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Plant Type
Broadleaf Evergreen
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Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun, Partial Shade, Full Shade
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Height
3'-12' / 0.9m - 3.7m
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Width
3'-10' / 0.9m - 3.0m
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Bloom Time
Spring, Late Spring, Early Summer
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Native To
Northwestern United States, California, Canada
Special Characteristics
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Bark Texture
Smooth
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Usage
Edible, Foundation, Fruit / Fruit Tree, Hedges, Mixed Border, Screening / Wind Break
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Sharp or Has Thorns
No
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Invasive
No
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Attracts
Birds, Hummingbirds, Butterflies
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Self-Sowing
No
