Big Blueberries (Vaccinium ovalifolium), Lots of Them

Observation: The blueberries (Vaccinium ovalifolium) are earlier this year, by maybe a month and also big and blue. Even the salmonberries, they'er ready at about the same time this year. There are a lot of them at our local old airport strip. Which is quite surprising because this past winter we didn't have much snow. They're early, and they're so big. We thought they'd be smaller this year because we had so little snow this past winter. But we have been having more rain than usual, so that might be why the berries are so big.

LEO says: There were a few related past posts of early blueberries. Starting in the southwest part of Alaska, early Jun 2, 2016 in Mountain Village,the community noticed the berries were beginning to grow a bit, normally the plant would be ready for picking by the end of June into early July. The following day Jun 3, 2016 on Baranof Island in Sitka folks were mentioning how ripe and sweet-tasting the blueberries were. Going back a couple of years in southcentral Alaska in Seldovia the berries were ready for the picking by early Jul 10, 2014, easily a month ahead of schedule for that region of the state. (M. Tcheripanoff)

Resource:

• LEO Network is hosting in collaboration with USGS an annual survey about berry harvest in Alaska. If you are a berry harvester you are welcome to participate in our LEO Berry Assessment. See also the published report, How are your berries? Perspectives of Alaska’s environmental managers on trends in wild berry abundance. (J. Hupp et al.)LEO Network is hosting in collaboration with USGS an annual survey about berry harvest in Alaska. If you are a berry harvester you are welcome to participate in our LEO Berry Assessment

Video: View this short-video produced in the Metlakatla Indian Community of Alaska titled, Berry Fruit Leather:: METLAKATLA :: Store Outside Your Door. In this short 6:22 minute video, Metlakatla's Naomi Leask teaches us how to make fruit leather out of local berries! This Southeast Alaska community has a berry bounty each year. You can try this recipe with local berries from your area. Berries are rich in phytonutrients and antioxidants (great for heart and brain health). The video was published on September 8, 2015 by The Store Outside Your Door project, an ANTHC Wellness and Prevention initiative to promote the knowledge and use of traditional foods and traditional ways.