Bastard blueberry
| Bastard blueberry | ||||||||||||
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Vaccinium x intermedium | ||||||||||||
| Ruthe |
The bastard bilberry ( Vaccinium × intermedium ), sometimes also called the middle bilberry , is an extremely rare spontaneous hybrid between the bilberry ( Vaccinium myrtillus ) and the lingonberry ( Vaccinium vitis-idea ).
features
The bastard bilberry was first described in 1834 by Johann Friedrich Ruthe (1788-1859), who discovered the hybrid in the Jungfernheide near Berlin . Since the characteristics of both parents are inherited intermediately , the dwarf shrub is phenotypically between the bilberry and the lingonberry. Like the lingonberry, it has evergreen leaves, but their shape is reminiscent of V. myrtillus . However, the hybrid does not appear to be constant in traits. There are said to be occurrences that tend more towards V. myrtillus and those that are more like V. vitis-idea . The mixed form can produce shiny fruits with a taste somewhere between blueberries and lingonberries. The flowering period, which begins after the blueberry and before the cranberry begins to bloom, is also intermediate. However, it flowers and fruit only very rarely and most of the seeds are considered incapable of germination. The reproduction at the site is therefore primarily carried out by rhizomes .
Location claims and occurrences
Vaccinium × intermedium basically occurs in the vicinity of both parent species and therefore has the same location requirements as these. The main occurrences are in pine forests and dwarf shrub stands. Many stands are on the edge of forest clearings and aisles.
General distribution
In Europe, Vaccinium intermedium is only very sparsely distributed. It is said to be more common in the British Isles. Evidence was provided in Denmark , Sweden , Finland , Russia ( Kaliningrad area ), the Netherlands , Poland and the Czech Republic .
Distribution in Germany
Within Germany, the bastard blueberry has so far been detected in Brandenburg , Lower Saxony , North Rhine-Westphalia , the Palatinate , Saxony , Thuringia , Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Bavaria . In Lower Saxony, the bastard has a distribution focus in the western part of the country (area around Osnabrück ) and in the area of the Lüneburg Heath . In Westphalia he was a. a. discovered in the Senne (near Hövelhof ) and near Steinhagen ( Kraalbusch ).
literature
- P. Brauer: The middle blueberry. In: Lower Saxony hunter. Issue 18, p. 369.
- Karsten Horn, Eckhard Garve: On the occurrence of the bastard blueberry (Vaccinium × intermedium RUTHE) in Lower Saxony. In: Floristic notes from the Lüneburg Heath. Issue 14/2006, pp. 23-35.