''Vaccinium padifolium'' (Madeira blueberry) is very common at elevations between . It grows mainly in crevices and exposed slopes and mountain plains. Fruits are used in preserves. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the islands of

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

and

Porto Santo Porto Santo Island () is a Portuguese island northeast of Madeira Island in the North Atlantic Ocean; it is the northernmost and easternmost island of the archipelago of Madeira, located in the Atlantic Ocean west of Europe and Africa. The muni ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

Description

It is a semi-evergreen scrub to small tree 1.5–6 m tall. New branches are generally reddish and pubescent. Leaves are often flushed dark red in autumn 2.5–7 × 1–2(2.5) cm, oblong to elliptic, acute to

acuminate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

, petiole short, pubescent. Calyx 3–4 mm, with five short, broad lobes up to 1.5 mm. Flowers on curved

pedicels In botany, a pedicel is a stem that attaches a single flower to the inflorescence. Such inflorescences are described as ''pedicellate''. Description Pedicel refers to a structure connecting a single flower to its inflorescence. In the absenc ...

in erect, axillary,

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

eate

racemes A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...

. Corolla, 7–10 mm, globose to campanulate, the lobes very short. There are often five broad rose stripes on the white corolla. Berries up to 12 × 10 mm, ripening blue-black.

Chemistry

The blue color of the berries is due to anthocyanins ( Delphinidin 3-O-α-rhamnoside and anthocyanins triglycosides).Anthocyanin trisaccharides in blue berries of Vaccinium padifolium. Luis Cabrita, Nils Åge Frøystein and Øyvind M. Andersen, Food Chemistry, Volume 69, Issue 1, April 2000, Pages 33–36,

Picture gallery

File:Vaccinium padifolium shrubs on a slope in front of a view towards São Vicente in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium shrubs on a slope in front of a view of São Vicente in Madeira, Portugal. File:Vaccinium padifolium bushes on a slope in front of a view towards São Vicente in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium bushes on a slope in front of a view towards São Vicente. File:Vaccinium padifolium, Encumenada mountain plain in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium. File:Vaccinium padifolium, flowers, Encumenada mountain plain in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium, flowers. File:Vaccinium padifolium in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium. File:Vaccinium padifolium, autumn leaves, Encumenada mountain plain in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium, autumn leaves. File:Vaccinium padifolium, over 2 m high shrub, Encumenada mountain plain in October 1999..jpg, Vaccinium padifolium, over 2 m high shrub.

References

* Flora Endémica da Madeira, Roberto Jardim, David Francisco, Múchia, Publicações, 1ªed, 2000, Portugal, * J. R. Press and M. J. Short, Flora of Madeira, , 2001, Natural History Museum, UK, {{Taxonbar, from=Q10388513 padifolium Endemic flora of Madeira