Blueberry
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Blueberry plants [[reproduction]] was designed specifically for [[pollination]]. The flowers of blueberries need to be pollinated by [[insects]]. There are special characteristics in a blueberry [[flower]] that make pollination easier. The flowers are fused, having only one end opened, the nectarines, which cause the blueberry to become pollinated, are at the base of the ovary and have a sweet-smelling aroma, attracting the insect far into the flower. It’s stamens are shorter than normal, the pollen is unable to fall on the stigma; the plant is designed to not self-pollinate. Unlike many other kinds of pollen, the blueberry’s pollen was created to be heavy and sticky, so that it is unable to be blown by the wind. [http://www.hort.purdue.edu/hort/courses/HORT414/Blueberrylecture.html] | Blueberry plants [[reproduction]] was designed specifically for [[pollination]]. The flowers of blueberries need to be pollinated by [[insects]]. There are special characteristics in a blueberry [[flower]] that make pollination easier. The flowers are fused, having only one end opened, the nectarines, which cause the blueberry to become pollinated, are at the base of the ovary and have a sweet-smelling aroma, attracting the insect far into the flower. It’s stamens are shorter than normal, the pollen is unable to fall on the stigma; the plant is designed to not self-pollinate. Unlike many other kinds of pollen, the blueberry’s pollen was created to be heavy and sticky, so that it is unable to be blown by the wind. [http://www.hort.purdue.edu/hort/courses/HORT414/Blueberrylecture.html] | ||
| - | + | The plants reproduce by [[seed]] and by rhizomes; when needing to protect itself in harsh conditions. Their flowers are important in attracting pollinating insects, too few of flowers might not get the plat noticed, and with around less than thirty flowers the plant rarely makes blueberries. With over four thousand flowers the plants would turn out to be very productive. It takes a while for the first flowers on a blueberry plant to be created, around when the plant is four years old. Wild bees are the most common pollinators of blueberry plants; and with [[deer mice]], [[chipmunks]], red black voles, [[robins]] and [[black bears]] being important at scattering the seeds. The fruit that is produced is largely dependant on the environment and many different factors at that exact time. It grows best in cool and acidic dirt. The blueberry plant seed germinates best with light. When at seventy degrees Fahrenheit with it being light for sixteen hours every twenty-four hours the seed germinates quickly. The maximum amount of time for the seed to start and finish germinating is twelve weeks, with the minimum amount being nine weeks. | |
[http://www.rook.org/earl/bwca/nature/shrubs/vacciniuman.html] | [http://www.rook.org/earl/bwca/nature/shrubs/vacciniuman.html] | ||
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== Ecology == | == Ecology == | ||
Revision as of 22:38, 13 April 2009
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| Blueberry |
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| Scientific Classification |
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| Species |
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| Habit range in N. America |
Contents |
Introduction
Unlike most fruits, blueberries are a native plant in North America.
Anatomy
Blueberries are unique in their anatomy. The plant that the blueberry grows from starts out as a woody plant, and as it grows, creates green canes, that have thick, water-storing leaves or stems, starting at the base, growing to the top of the plant. With the different types of blueberry plants, there are also different sizes. The lowbush blueberry plant, usually being less than three feet tall, is a small type of blueberry bush, and while highbush blueberry plants can be anywhere from four to ten feet tall, the rabbiteye blueberry plants can grow up to twenty feet tall.
A blueberry’s root system varies from each species. Both highbush and lowbush blueberries have fibrous roots that don’t have root hairs, yet highbush blueberry plants have endotrophic mvcorhizza, which assist the roots in absorbing water and nutrients, while lowbush blueberry plants have rhizomes instead of roots, which makes them able to grow more in area, rather than height. Highbush roots can spread in an area of around six feet from the original base of the plant, yet don’t usually go farther down than three feet. The roots are very thin, the finest ones only able to become twenty µm in their diameter. [1]
The fruit buds for a blueberry start to develop around the end of the summer and going into fall. They develop basipetally; developing towards the base from the tip of the freshly made shoot. The shoot diameter plays a role in the number of flower buds and the fruit size. The bigger the shoot diameter is, the larger the fruit will be, and the number of flower buds also depends on the climate where the blueberry plant grows. Fruit size is also affected by the number of seeds; the more there is the bigger the fruit can be. The flower growing within the bud grows differently than the fruit buds. It grows from the base to the tip; oppositely than the fruit buds.[2]
Reproduction
Blueberry plants reproduction was designed specifically for pollination. The flowers of blueberries need to be pollinated by insects. There are special characteristics in a blueberry flower that make pollination easier. The flowers are fused, having only one end opened, the nectarines, which cause the blueberry to become pollinated, are at the base of the ovary and have a sweet-smelling aroma, attracting the insect far into the flower. It’s stamens are shorter than normal, the pollen is unable to fall on the stigma; the plant is designed to not self-pollinate. Unlike many other kinds of pollen, the blueberry’s pollen was created to be heavy and sticky, so that it is unable to be blown by the wind. [3]
The plants reproduce by seed and by rhizomes; when needing to protect itself in harsh conditions. Their flowers are important in attracting pollinating insects, too few of flowers might not get the plat noticed, and with around less than thirty flowers the plant rarely makes blueberries. With over four thousand flowers the plants would turn out to be very productive. It takes a while for the first flowers on a blueberry plant to be created, around when the plant is four years old. Wild bees are the most common pollinators of blueberry plants; and with deer mice, chipmunks, red black voles, robins and black bears being important at scattering the seeds. The fruit that is produced is largely dependant on the environment and many different factors at that exact time. It grows best in cool and acidic dirt. The blueberry plant seed germinates best with light. When at seventy degrees Fahrenheit with it being light for sixteen hours every twenty-four hours the seed germinates quickly. The maximum amount of time for the seed to start and finish germinating is twelve weeks, with the minimum amount being nine weeks. [4]
Ecology
Other
Gallery
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References
- Blueberry Root Anatomy Luis Valehzuela. http://www.personal.psu.edu. Viewed on 4/11/09.
- Blueberry Purdue University Horticulture & Landscape Architecture. http://www.hort.purdue.edu/hort/default.shtml. Viewed on 4/11/09.
- Late low blueberry Rook, Earl J.S. http://www.rook.org. last updated August 9, 1999. Viewed 4/13/09.
- USDA, NRCS. 2009. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 13 April 2009). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.
See Also
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