Huckleberry:
Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality

Michael S. Reid
Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis

Description

Vaccinium ovatum, Huckleberry is native to the Western coast in areas from northern California to British Columbia. Vaccinium is the ancient Latin name for blueberry, and the specific epithet ‘ovatum’ refers to the oval leaf shape of this species.

Quality Indices

Harvest branches when fully mature, without soft tips. This species is very long lasting with few postharvest problems. Thus, if it looks good at time of purchase it should perform well.

Ethylene Sensitivity

Huckleberry is not sensitive to ethylene.

Pretreatments

No pretreatments are required for huckleberry.

Storage Conditions

Huckleberry can be stored for extended periods, by enclosing pre-cooled bunches in a plastic vapor barrier and holding them at temperatures near freezing (0ºC).

Special Considerations

Watch for excessive storage as depicted by fungal growth (fuzziness), and water soaked or discolored leaves. Their woody stems sometimes make it difficult to re-cut. Re-cutting this species is less critical than for other floral crops.

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Huckleberry: Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality

Huckleberry:
Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality