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The Amazing Blueberry
I don't think it would be possible to design a better fruit than the blueberry. Blueberries are delicious. When blueberries are plentiful, bears have been known to feast on them exclusively.
Blueberries are easy to harvest. In a few hours, grandparents and small children can pick enough blueberries for hundreds of pies, thousands of muffins, and to top a bowl of cereal every day of the year.
Some botanists say a relative of the blueberry is more than 13,000 years old. While acid rains have made the soil inhospitable for many plants, blueberries prefer an acid soil and are thriving as the pH of soil in New England and the Midwest is dropping.
The blueberry blossom has the shape of a five-pointed star. Some Native Americans believed the five-pointed star shape was a sign from the gods that blueberries were sent to relieve the hunger of children during famines.
Blueberries are a nutritious low calorie, low sodium, cholesterol free food. The USDA Nutrition Center ranks blueberries #1 in antioxidant activity when compared to the 40 most popular fruits and vegetables. Anthocyanin, which is the pigment that makes blueberries blue, is thought to be a powerful antioxidant and responsible for some of the blueberry's major health benefits.
While scientists have only recently discovered the antioxidant properties of blueberries and identified the 10 minerals, including calcium, selenium, manganese, and iron that are found in them, blueberries have been used for medicinal purposes for centuries.
Native Americans used nearly every part of the blueberry—the flowers, leaves, roots, young shoots, and the berries, to make medicines. Blueberry juice was used as a cough syrup. Various blueberry concoctions were used to treat bladder stones, urinary tract infections, liver disorders, lung problems, diarrhea, gout, rheumatism, and problems related to childbirth. A number of recent studies have documented that the blueberry, and its related European cousin, improves eyesight and easy eye fatigue. Some research has indicated that blueberries may reduce the progression of Alzheimer's disease.
The blueberry is native to North America. Early settlers found large stands in the Maritimes and coastal New England. Nearly 95% of the world's blueberry production comes from North America. The United States produces more than 100 tons, and Canada has an annual production of nearly 50 tons. Blueberries are Maine's state fruit. They are one of the most important agricultural crops in New Jersey and Michigan.
Blueberries have a variety of culinary uses. They can be eaten raw, used in baked goods such as pies, muffins, and pancakes, and used with meats. Lewis and Clark reported that Native Americans pounded blueberries into meat that was smoked and dried. Frozen blueberries keep for more than two years; dried blueberries keep even longer.
If you would like to enjoy the experience of picking fresh blueberries, I suggest you stop at Super Acres Blueberry Farm on River Road just a short distance south of Lyme's Edgell Covered Bridge. The Super Acres Blueberry Farm, which has more than a thousand blueberry bushes, is open from 8 AM to 7 PM during blueberry season.
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