Vaccinium corymbosum 'Sunshine Blue' (Highbush Blueberry)

Vaccinium corymbosum 'Sunshine Blue' is a compact cultivar of highbush blueberry, a bushy, upright shrub known and widely regarded for its tasty edible fruits, which are also prized by birds and wildlife. The 'Sunshine Blue' cultivar differs from other blueberry cultivars with its compact size of only 3-4' tall as well as its late-season flowering, which means that it produces flowers late enough in the season that they are protected from late frosts. The 'Sunshine Blue' cultivar's smaller size means that it will produce a denser crop of fruit as it matures; this cultivar is considered a southern highbush cultivar, requiring milder winters/fewer cold days during the winter to produce a good crop.

Vaccinium corymbosum 'Sunshine Blue' produces white, bell-shaped flowers, which are attractive to pollinators and butterflies, in late May, avoiding any risk of frost damage; flowers begin ripening into small-to-medium sized edible berries around the end of June and beginning of July. Blueberry bushes like 'Sunshine Blue' make great additions to open yards as a source of free fruit, or as border and hedge plantings, where you can produce fruit en masse, and fall colors of orange and red add multi-season interest; additionally, with this cultivar's small size, it works in even more locations around the home. If utilizing blueberry bushes for fruit production, care should be taken to cover plants while fruit develops to avoid bird damage.