FNPS Plant Database

Vaccinium darrowii

Darrow's blueberry
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

Darrow's blueberry

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Vaccinium darrowii

Family:

Ericaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

Shrub

Size:

to 2 ft tall by about 2 ft wide–spreading by rhisomes–form clones typically up–about 50 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white, pink

Fruit Color:

blue, purple, black

Phenology:

Evergreen. Blooms in early spring. Fruits ripe in late spring

Noted For:

Showy Flowers, Showy Fruits, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Low hedge or border plant, specimen plant in a wildflower garden, mass planting.

Considerations:

Must have acidic soil.

Availability:

Native Nurseries

Propagation:

Seed, softwood cuttings, and division.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

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Somewhat moist, no flooding -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Soil pH:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

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Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
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No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Caterpillars, Birds, Mammals

Attracts various pollinators, especially native bees. Documented bee species include Agapostemon splendens, Augochlorella aurata, A. Gratiosaand Apis mellifera(honeybee) (Deyrup et al. 2002).

Birds and other wildlife consume the fruit.

Native Habitats:

Moist sites. Flatwoods, scrubby flatwoods

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

Edible fruits.

General Comments:

Leaves are glaucous and appear to be blue-green sometimes with pink-violet overtones. The range includes the Florida panhandle and much of the penninsula. Based on BONAP and IRC herbarium specimen maps, it extends north into southern Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. It is likely absent or of very sparse occurrence in northeast Florida and southeast Georgia, and southeastern Florida.
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

BONAP Plant Atlas. (2014). ( https://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Vaccinium%20darrowii.png ). Accessed 2025. Biota of North America Program, Chapel Hill, NC.


Deyrup, Mark, Jay Edirisinghe, and Beth Norden. (2002). The diversity and floral hosts of bees at the Archbold Biological Station, Florida (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Insecta Mundi, 544. ( https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/insectamundi/544/ ). Accessed 2026.


Huegel, Craig N. (2010). Native Plant Landscaping for Florida Wildlife. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.


Nelson, Gil. (2003). Florida's Best Landscape Plants: 200 Readily Available Species for Homeowners and Professionals. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.


Osorio, Rufino. (2001). A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, FL.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL.

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