Sparkleberry, Tree Sparkleberry, Winter Huckleberry, Huckleberry
Family:
Ericaceae (Heath Family)
Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map
East Central Texas Plains, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Texas Blackland Prairies, Western Gulf Coastal Plain
Bastrop Lost Pines, Floodplains and Low Terraces2, Northern Post Oak Savanna, Northern Prairie Outliers, San Antonio Prairie, Southern Post Oak Savanna
Flatwoods, Floodplains and Low Terraces3, Pleistocene Fluvial Terraces, Red River Bottomlands, Southern Tertiary Uplands, Tertiary Uplands
Plant Characteristics
Growth Form
Tree
Height
12
to
15
ft.
Spread
10
to
12
ft.
Leaf Retention
Deciduous
Lifespan
Perennial
Habitat and Care Requirements
Soil Type(s)
Sand, Loam, Acid, Well Drained, Moist
Light Requirement
Part Shade
Water Requirement
Medium
Native Habitat
Woodland, Wetland or Riparian
Bloom and Attraction
Bloom Color
White
Bloom Season
Spring
Seasonal Interest
Fruit, Fall Color, Pollen, Larval Host
Wildlife Benefit
Butterflies, Birds, Small Mammals, Bees
Maintenance
Drought tolerant. Sparkleberry grows best in sun to partial shade and likes dry to moist sandy or rocky soil. It is drought and heat tolerant and a high-value wildlife plant. Don’t prune. Propagation: Seed, Softwood cuttings.
Comments
Blooms March-June. Small tree In the blueberry family with small blue fruits for birds. Exfoliating reddish bark. In late spring, fragrant white urn-shaped flowers. Red fall color lasts a long time. Attracts birds, pollinators (including native bees), small mammals. Larval host: Henry’s Elfin Butterfly, Striped Hairstreak
1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) Miller, George O., Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas 2nd Ed., 2013, pg 48. 3) Wasowski and Wasowski, Native Texas Plants Landscaping Region by Region, 1991, pg. 304, 305. 4) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=VAAR. 5) https://portal.torcherbaria.org/portal/taxa/index.php?taxon=Vaccinium+arboreum&formsubmit=Search+Terms. 6) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=9872&locationType=County&mapType=Normal, 7) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=23580#null, 8) https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/vaccinium-arboreum/
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