The Lowbush Blueberry, otherwise known as the Vaccinium Angustifolium or Low-Bush Blueberry, Late Sweet Blueberry, is a somewhat well known shrub plant native to the Northeast, and the Southeast of the United States.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its purple-colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, this is exactly what we’ll cover in this Lowbush Blueberry Care Guide. So let’s dive in.
The basic care guidelines you need to remember for your Lowbush Blueberry are the following:
- Water: The Lowbush Blueberry needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
- Light: Keep your Vaccinium Angustifolium in an environment where it can receive partial to full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Lowbush Blueberry in soil with moist but well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of sand and loam.
That’s it – sunlight, water and soil! The basic 3 fundamentals for all plant care, and with the Lowbush Blueberry this is no exception. With these three elements, your leafy friend will live healthy and happy.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Lowbush Blueberry belongs to the Ericaceae family, the genus Vaccinium and the species Angustifolium, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Vaccinium Angustifolium.
Other common Ericaceae species include Scottish Heather ‘Aphrodite’, Pieris X ‘Brouwer’S Beauty’, ‘Red Head’Japanese Pieris and Veronica X ‘Waterperry Blue’.
As with other Vaccinium’s, the Lowbush Blueberry is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
The Lowbush Blueberry is a plant native to Eastern North America. This is why the Vaccinium Angustifolium is used to growing in specific regions such as the states in Northeast, and the Southeast of the United States.
Knowing your plant’s native region is very useful, as it can give you tips on which environment is best for your Lowbush Blueberry. If you keep it in mind, you can try to replicate these conditions at home, and you’ll likely end with a healthier plant.
With this in mind, the Vaccinium Angustifolium will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 8 region.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Lowbush Blueberry is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But what exactly does this mean for your Lowbush Blueberry? How large a pot should you consider, how tall, how wide can it get? Let’s jump in…
The Vaccinium Angustifolium can grow up to 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) in 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) and 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm) in 1′ – 2′ (30cm – 60cm).
These dimensions make the Lowbush Blueberry a relatively medium shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
Also, expect it to grow in a wonderful compact shape, which is something worthwhile to remember when making your garden landscape plans.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 24″ (60cm) free so the Lowbush Blueberry can spread to its best extent.
Watering
In terms of watering, the Lowbush Blueberry is a fairly complicated plant to take care of. This is mostly because it has a not so straightforward watering schedule and somewhat irregular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Vaccinium Angustifolium needs evenly spread moist soil – try to avoid letting the soil dry out.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively average needs in terms of water.
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Lowbush Blueberry in soil with moist but well-draining to well-draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has moist, and occasionally dry properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Lowbush Blueberry since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Lowbush Blueberry prefers to have soil with moist, and occasionally dry properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of sand and loam.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably acid soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Lowbush Blueberry requires partial to full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Vaccinium Angustifolium in from full or deep shade (no direct sunlight or at most 2 hours per day), to little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to dappled or moderate shade (under other plant’s canopy).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Lowbush Blueberry will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes. But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the spring (late), the summer (early, mid, late), and during the fall.
Flowers
In particular, this shrub is well known for its showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Lowbush Blueberry produces some beautiful white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Lowbush Blueberry have a beautiful purple color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a simple arrangement with a alternate organization in its leaves.
The Lowbush Blueberry is well known for being able to attract butterflies and birds, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Garden
How should you then organize your garden to include your new Lowbush Blueberry? Here are some recommendations by expert gardeners.
Most Vaccinium Angustifolium owners agree that this shrub will look great in most cottage and rustic gardens of all types. Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Lowbush Blueberry’s best location within your garden is in beds and borders, and in ground covers, others use it for landscaping in a hedge, border, container, or a woodland garden.
Conclusion
Even though we covered a lot of care information for your Lowbush Blueberry, remember the basics: sunlight, soil and water, as these should be enough to grow a healthy plant at home.
