Wild blueberries growing in Botetourt County, Virginia. Bruce Ingram
Elaine likes to tease me about the time she made the “world’s smallest blueberry cobbler.” I had been searching for summer berries on our Potts Mountain land (elevation 3200 feet) on the Virginia and West Virginia border when I came across a swath of lowbush blueberry plants growing along an old logging road. Elated, I picked a cup and proudly took them home to my wife who good-naturedly made the aforementioned one-person, one serving dessert.
Wild blueberries are much smaller and not as sweet as store-bought ones, but they are, nevertheless, a real treat for those of who delight in searching for wild edibles. Interestingly, in the Blue Ridge, blueberries seem to have wildly varying ripening times, perhaps based on sunlight, elevation, and soil composition. On Potts Mountain, they ripen in late July and early August, but behind our creek valley house in Botetourt County, Virginia, they come in during early July and on another property they tend to turn blue in mid-August.
Unsurprisingly, wildlife favor blueberries as well. I’ve spooked ruffed grouse feeding on them and have spotted bear scat in these thickets as well. It would be hard to think of a wild mammal in our region that would not scarf down blueberries. So be on the lookout for blueberries this month and maybe you’ll find enough for a full-size cobbler.
Bruce and Elaine Ingram will profile a different wild edible every month. For more information on their book Living the Locavore Lifestyle, contact them at bruceingramoutdoors@gmail.com
