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Huckleberry, billberry, whortleberry, grouseberry

August 25, 2023 By Erica M. Davis 2 Comments

The other day I collected three precious pints of Colorado huckleberries (Vaccinium species). They may be small, but their intense, sweet-acid punch means a little goes a long way. They are some of my favorite wild berries!

Here in the Central/Southern Rockies we have three species, all growing from low groundcover (ankle to knee height) beneath aspen, pine, spruce, and fir—such that you may have hiked miles over them without noticing. Look under the foliage for small, red to purple or powder blue berries with a round stamp at one end.

Whortleberry or dwarf bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus)

The whortleberry or dwarf bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) is most well-known. The foliage is bright green, with elliptic, serrated leaves and ridged green branches. The berries range from wine-colored to blue-purple and can be up to 1 cm wide.

Grouseberry or red whortleberry (Vaccinium scoparium)

The closely related grouseberry or red whortleberry (Vaccinium scoparium) typically has red berries and smaller leaves, but it can hybridize with V. myrtillus, so these traits are variable. The berries are smaller but often quite plentiful.

Dwarf blueberry (Vaccinium caespitosum)

Last is the dwarf blueberry (Vaccinium caespitosum), which has orange-brown, non-ridged branches and leaves that widen toward the distal tip. Typical berries are powder blue. Look in alpine meadows on plants just a few inches tall.

Traveling with containers is a good idea.

Moving north and west one finds the most famous of Western huckleberries (Vaccinium membranaceum), known as black, thinleaf, or mountain huckleberry. This taller species can exceed chest-height and produce rather large berries in the heart of its range. For some, it is the only “huckleberry.”

Speaking of which, I am using the term “huckleberry” to talk about Western Vaccinium species as a group. Some people vehemently object to this usage.

In the eastern United States, the term is used for seedy berries in the genus Gaylussacia, and the name “blueberry” is reserved for Vaccinium species. But we have many Vacciniums in the West, a number of which were dubbed “huckleberries” long ago—so the waters are rather muddy.

If anyone chews you out for calling a whortleberry a huckleberry, let him know that these words likely have the same origin (Thayer, 2010), and also that they are just common names, which vary by region after all. You do not have to turn in your forager badge. Just smile politely and offer some berries.

Not all patches fruit in equal abundance every year. I usually travel with pint containers  in case I find  a good one. Berries can be plucked or “tickled” from one hand into the next. A huckleberry rake is a good investment; one uses it to gently rake the outer branches a few at a time. (In my experience, if you yank too many at once, the berries crush between the tines.) With practice, you’ll be able to do this without breaking many branches–and those you do break can be brewed into a nutritive tea.

Interested in more berry education? Sign up for Wild Berries I & II for just $20/each:

WEB CLASS: Wild Berries
WEB CLASS: Wild Berries II

New Podcast: Pinyon Pines & Mesquite

August 23, 2023 By Erica M. Davis

Did you know that piñon pines produce delicious pine nuts similar to those we purchase in the … [Read More...]

WFG on Wild Fish & Game podcast

January 13, 2022 By Erica M. Davis

Hi folks, I just wanted to share this interview I did with Justin and Kory at the Wild Fish & … [Read More...]

Wild jelly candies

October 24, 2021 By Erica M. Davis

This year I have been experimenting with wild jelly candies made from the concentrated juice of wild … [Read More...]

Dandelion coffee

October 12, 2021 By Erica M. Davis

Today the house is full with a rich, chocolatey aroma, as I have been roasting roots for dandelion … [Read More...]

Oregon grape delight

October 8, 2021 By Erica M. Davis 7 Comments

On a perfect fall morning in a tunnel of quaking aspen, where the sun illuminates the warm pigments of … [Read More...]

Wild seed drink

September 30, 2021 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

This gorgeous wild seed drink is one of the best things I’ve made in a while! I used the seeds of … [Read More...]

Quickweed greens

September 15, 2021 By Erica M. Davis 5 Comments

As the season for abundant leafy greens wanes, I find myself more and more obsessed, tiptoeing daily around my … [Read More...]

Wild chewing gum

March 8, 2021 By Erica M. Davis 10 Comments

I am so taken with wild chewing gums lately. These are obtained from the resin or pitch that exudes from … [Read More...]

Edible plant ID in winter

March 7, 2021 By Erica M. Davis 3 Comments

This is a round-up of the ID challenges I ran on Facebook this year. How many edible plants can you recognize … [Read More...]

WFG on Mushroom Hour podcast

March 6, 2021 By Erica M. Davis Leave a Comment

Hi folks, I just wanted to share this interview I did with Darren at Welcome to Mushroom Hour. It is one of my … [Read More...]

The delicious ‘wild wonderberry’

October 1, 2019 By Erica M. Davis 26 Comments

I am just back from the Midwest Wild Harvest Festival, where a big bowl of black nightshade berries (Solanum … [Read More...]

Eating nodding thistle stalks

June 17, 2019 By Erica M. Davis 2 Comments

On Saturday I stopped by my sister-in-law’s house, where I was persuaded to help weed her hillside of invasive … [Read More...]

Japanese knotweed season

April 9, 2019 By Erica M. Davis 5 Comments

I’m breaking my fast this morning with stewed Japanese knotweed and peaches over Greek yogurt, topped with … [Read More...]

Best dandelion soup ever

March 13, 2019 By Erica M. Davis 7 Comments

Two years ago I was harvesting great quantities of dandelions greens from my back yard—which is located at … [Read More...]

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Wild Food Girl

Summer foraging

Huckleberry, billberry, whortleberry, grouseberry

Quickweed greens

Eating nodding thistle stalks

Forgotten rhubarb of the Old West

Narrow dock in mushroom sauce

Wild tarragon in the weeds

A tale of four daisies

You’re my candytuft

Lamb’s quarters pesto

Book reviews

Samuel Thayer’s ‘Incredible Wild Edibles’

Hank Shaw’s ‘Buck, Buck, Moose’

Katrina Blair’s ‘Wild Wisdom of Weeds’

Thomas Elpel’s ‘Foraging the Mountain West’

Dina Falconi’s ‘Foraging & Feasting’

Ellen Zachos’ ‘Backyard Foraging’

Rebecca Lerner’s ‘Dandelion Hunter’

John Kallas’ ‘Edible Wild Plants’

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