Vaccinium myrtillus, Vaccinium oreophilum, SE: Blåbär,
DE: Blaubeere, NL: Blauwe bosbes, UK: Bilberry, Whortleberry

Scientific name:  Vaccinium myrtillus L.
Synonym name:  Vaccinium oreophilum Rydb.
Swedish name:  Blåbär
German name:  Blaubeere
Nederlandse naam:  Blauwe bosbes
English name:  Bilberry, Whortleberry
Family:  Ericaceae, Heath family, Ljungväxter

Vilda blommor i Sverige, Sweden Flora, Jamtland, Ragunda, Hammarstrand, Flowers

Life form:  Perennial dwarf shrub; rhizomatous
Stems:  Height 10–40 cm, erect, abundantly branched, woody, old stems round, brown, young stems bristly, green, glabrous
Leaves:  alternate, entire, elliptical
Flowers:  Bell-shaped reddish or pink flowers
Flowering Period:  May, June
Fruits:  Spherical, dark blue and wax-covered or black and shiny, occasionally off-white, inside dark red, juicy berry
Habitat:  Forests, thickets, heath

flowers in Sweden


Derivation of the botanical name:
Vaccinium, from an old name used in the works of
Virgil (Publius Vergilius Maro, 70-19 BCE) and Pliny the Elder (Gaius Plinius Secundus, 23-79 CE).
myrtillus refers to the resemblance of the leaves to those of myrtle.
  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation Rydb. is used to indicate Per Axel Rydberg (1860 – 1931), a Swedish-born, American botanist, the first curator of the New York Botanical Garden Herbarium.

Swedish wildflowers