Description:
A decidious Shrub growing to 0.2m by 0.3m.
The angular, green, branched stem grows from a creeping rootstock to a height of 1 to 1.5 feet. The leaves are alternate, obovate to ovate, weakly serrate, dark green and shiny on top and 0.5 to 1 inch long. The reddish pink or red and white, solitary, auxiliary flowers have a pitcher shaped corolla and appear in May and June. The fruit is usually blue-black; it may be red in some cases. The berry is 5-seeded.

Distribution and habitat:
Woodland Garden; Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade.
Blueberry is found in Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to Spain, Macedonia, the Caucasus, N. Asia, Canada and the United States.

Hystory:
Modern research of bilberry was partly based on its use by British World War II pilots, who noticed that their night vision improved when they ate bilberry jam prior to night bombing raids.
They were called black-hearts in 19th century southern England, according to Thomas Hardy's 1878 novel, The Return of the Native, (pg. 311, Oxford World's Classics edition).
Bilberries were also collected at Lughnassadh, the first traditional harvest festival of the year, as celebrated by the Gaelic people. The crop of billberries was said to indicate how well the rest of the crops would fare in their harvests later in the year.

Parts used:
The ripe fruit. The leaves.

Constituens:
Quinic acid is found in the leaves, and a little tannin. Triturated with water they yield a liquid which, filtered and assayed with sulphate of iron, becomes a beautiful green, first of all transparent, then giving a green precipitate.
The fruits contain sugar, etc.

Edible Uses:
Edible Parts: Fruit.
Edible Uses: Tea.
Fruit - raw or cooked. Sweet and very tasty, they make an excellent preserve, their small seeds making them suitable for jam. A slightly acid flavour when eaten raw. The fruit can be dried and used like currants. The fruit is up to 10mm in diameter. A tea is made from the leaves.

Medicinal Uses:
Antiseptic; Astringent; Diuretic; Kidney; Ophthalmic; Tonic.
The dried leaves of bilberries are used in the treatment of a variety of complaints. These leaves should be harvested in early autumn, only green leaves being selected, and then dried in gentle heat. The leaves should not be used medicinally for more than 3 weeks at a time. A tea made from the dried leaves is strongly astringent, diuretic, tonic and an antiseptic for the urinary tract. It is also a remedy for diabetes if taken for a prolonged period. Another report says that the leaves can be helpful in pre-diabetic states but that they are not an alternative to conventional treatment. The leaves contain glucoquinones, which reduce the levels of sugar in the blood. A decoction of the leaves or bark is applied locally in the treatment of ulcers and in ulceration of the mouth and throat. A distilled water made from the leaves is an excellent eyewash for soothing inflamed or sore eyes. Whilst the fresh fruit has a slightly laxative effect upon the body, when dried it is astringent and is commonly used in the treatment of diarrhoea etc. The dried fruit is also antibacterial and a decoction is useful for treating diarrhoea in children. The skin of the fruits contains anthocyanin and is specific in the treatment of hemeralopia (day-blindness). The fruit is a rich source of anthocyanosides, which have been shown experimentally to dilate the blood vessels, this makes it a potentially valuable treatment for varicose veins, haemorrhoids and capillary fragility.

Others Uses:
Dye; Ink.
A green dye is obtained from the leaves and the fruit and is used to colour fabrics. A blue or black dye is obtained from the fruit. This can be used as an ink.

Recipe:
Bilberry Jam
Put 3 lb. of clean, fresh fruit in a preserving pan with 1 1/2 lb. of sugar and about 1 cupful of water and bring to the boil. Then boil rapidly for 40 minutes. Apple juice made from windfalls and peelings, instead of the water, improves this jam. To make apple juice, cover the apples with water, stew down, and strain the juice through thick muslin. Blackberries may also be added to this mixture.
If the jam is to be kept long it must be bottled hot in screw-top jars, or, if tied down in the ordinary way, more sugar must be added.

Safety:
In recommended amounts, there are no known side effects with bilberry extract.
Bilberry does not interact with commonly prescribed drugs, and there are no known contraindications to its use during pregnancy or lactation. Leaves can produce symptoms of poisoning if used over long periods.