. Common plants of longleaf pine-bluestem range. Plant ecology; Grasses; Forage plants. TREE SPARKLEBERRY Vaccinium arboreum Marsh. Tree sparkleberry, also known as tree-huckle- berry or farkleberry, is an evergreen shrub or small tree of the heath family, Ericaceae. In the absence of fire, especially on fertile bottom-land soils, it reaches 30 feet or more—taller than any other native Vaccinium. On frequently burned sites, plants grow mainly in small colonies and stems are about 3 feet tall. On wet, sandy soils, tree sparkle- berry is commonly associated with southern wax- myrtle. Leaf shape
. Common plants of longleaf pine-bluestem range. Plant ecology; Grasses; Forage plants. TREE SPARKLEBERRY Vaccinium arboreum Marsh. Tree sparkleberry, also known as tree-huckle- berry or farkleberry, is an evergreen shrub or small tree of the heath family, Ericaceae. In the absence of fire, especially on fertile bottom-land soils, it reaches 30 feet or more—taller than any other native Vaccinium. On frequently burned sites, plants grow mainly in small colonies and stems are about 3 feet tall. On wet, sandy soils, tree sparkle- berry is commonly associated with southern wax- myrtle. Leaf shape is broadly ovate to elliptical. Blades are % to 2 inches long, and width is about 2/3 the length. Leaf margins are smooth; tips are usu- ally rounded, but some are pointed. Upper leaf surfaces are dark green, hairless, and shiny; the paler lower surfaces may be slightly hairy. Flow- ers, born in racemes on branches of the previous season, appear shortly after new leaves emerge. They are subtended by bracts that closely resemble the leaves in shape and texture but are much smal- ler. Sepals are united and small; the five white or pinkish petals, united except at the tips, form bell- shaped corollas about V4 inch long. Each flower produces a fleshy, many-seeded berry. Upon ripen- ing in late summer and fall, berries turn black. They persist on plants well into winter. Elliott blueberry, Vaccinium elliottii Chapm., often grows in association with tree sparkleberry. It flowers in late winter before leaves appear— much earlier than tree sparkleberry—and its leaves are finely toothed along the margins. Other Vac- ciniums and several closely related huckleberries (Gaylussacia spp.), occur on longleaf pine-bluestem range, but none are generally abundant. Cattle browse both tree sparkleberry and Elliott blueberry lightly during winter but seldom during the growing season. The fruits are eaten by a variety of birds. Range: Texas and Oklahoma to Florida, Illinois, and Virginia. Stem
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Keywords: ., boo, bookcentury1900, booksubjectforageplants, booksubjectgrasses
