by Low D Mon Dec 11, 2006 12:59 am
well, i just visited my new best friend, wikipedia. who told me:
Huckleberry is a name used in North America for several plants in two closely related genera in the family Ericaceae: Gaylussacia and Vaccinium.
While some Vaccinium species, such as the Red Huckleberry, are always called huckleberries, other species may be called blueberries or huckleberries depending upon local custom. Similar Vaccinium species in Europe are called bilberries.
Note that there is much confusion in naming of berries in American English. The 'garden huckleberry' (Solanum melanocerasum) is not considered to be a true huckleberry but a member of the nightshade family.
The fruit of the various species of plant called huckleberry are generally edible. The berries are small and round, usually less than 5 mm in diameter, and contain 10 relatively large seeds. Berries range in color according to species from bright red, through dark purple, and into the blues. In taste the berries range from tart to sweet, with a flavor similar to that of a blueberry, especially in blue/purple colored varieties. Huckleberries are a favorite of many animals such as bears.
so sweet it can ideed be, so your poeteic guess isn't far off. i've made blueberry wine, which was in fact sweet, so why not sweet huckleberry gin? a google search turned up some recipies for a drink called the "huckleberry gin fizz". my appologies for doubting your accuracy, even if it was a totally whimsical guess on your part!
it was red ones i was thinking of, which are what i generally encounter. but i do remember a trip to an old-growth forest valley just after i moved here where i encountered & consumed no small amount of blue ones (not the more common, low-to-the-ground "blueberries"), and they did tend towards the sweet. as i had consumed no small amount of magic mushrooms before the hike,the experience had slipped my mind.
i once paddled the moon river in a canoe, near perry sound, ontario. i suspect it is not the inspiration for the song, but is a nice trip. takes you to (or from) spider lake, good for a Pogues joke or two.
cheers, & thanks for your attention to the most trivial of questions! bet you were actually expecting commentary on the bloody music, rather than horticultural questioning...
well, i just visited my new best friend, wikipedia. who told me:
[i]Huckleberry is a name used in North America for several plants in two closely related genera in the family Ericaceae: Gaylussacia and Vaccinium.
While some Vaccinium species, such as the Red Huckleberry, are always called huckleberries, other species may be called blueberries or huckleberries depending upon local custom. Similar Vaccinium species in Europe are called bilberries.
Note that there is much confusion in naming of berries in American English. The 'garden huckleberry' (Solanum melanocerasum) is not considered to be a true huckleberry but a member of the nightshade family.
The fruit of the various species of plant called huckleberry are generally edible. The berries are small and round, usually less than 5 mm in diameter, and contain 10 relatively large seeds. Berries range in color according to species from bright red, through dark purple, and into the blues. In taste the berries range from tart to sweet, with a flavor similar to that of a blueberry, especially in blue/purple colored varieties. Huckleberries are a favorite of many animals such as bears.[/i]
so sweet it can ideed be, so your poeteic guess isn't far off. i've made blueberry wine, which was in fact sweet, so why not sweet huckleberry gin? a google search turned up some recipies for a drink called the "huckleberry gin fizz". my appologies for doubting your accuracy, even if it was a totally whimsical guess on your part!
it was red ones i was thinking of, which are what i generally encounter. but i do remember a trip to an old-growth forest valley just after i moved here where i encountered & consumed no small amount of blue ones (not the more common, low-to-the-ground "blueberries"), and they did tend towards the sweet. as i had consumed no small amount of magic mushrooms before the hike,the experience had slipped my mind.
i once paddled the moon river in a canoe, near perry sound, ontario. i suspect it is not the inspiration for the song, but is a nice trip. takes you to (or from) spider lake, good for a Pogues joke or two.
cheers, & thanks for your attention to the most trivial of questions! bet you were actually expecting commentary on the bloody music, rather than horticultural questioning...
