Vaccinium reticulatum
Species of flowering plant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vaccinium reticulatum, known as Ê»Åhelo Ê»ai in Hawaiian, is a species of flowering plant in the heather family, Ericaceae, that is endemic to Hawaii. It grows at altitudes of 640â3,700 m (2,100â12,140 ft) on lava flows and freshly disturbed volcanic ash on Maui and HawaiÊ»i, and less commonly on KauaÊ»i, OÊ»ahu, and MolokaÊ»i. Adaptations to volcanic activity include the ability to survive ash falls of over 25 cm (10 in) depth.
| Vaccinium reticulatum | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Ericaceae |
| Genus: | Vaccinium |
| Species: | V. reticulatum |
| Binomial name | |
| Vaccinium reticulatum | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
 Vaccinium reticulatum fruits, Maui | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 117 kJ (28 kcal) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
6.84 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.22 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0.38 g | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| â Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults,[2] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies.[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Description
Ê»Åhelo Ê»ai is a shrub usually 0.1â1.3 m (4 in â 4 ft 3 in) tall, rarely up to 2 m (6+1â2 ft). The leaves are evergreen, spirally arranged, leathery, oval, 1â3 cm (1â2â1+1â4 in) long, red when freshly emerging, then green or green with reddish patches. The flowers are bell-shaped, 8â12 mm (3â8â1â2 in) long, variable in color, red to yellow or pink.
Fruit
The fruit is a berry 8â14 mm (3â8â1â2 in) diameter, ranging in color from blue to purple to red to orange to yellow. The color does not necessarily indicate the ripeness of the berries. The berries taste somewhat similar to the related cranberries, less ripe ones being tart, while ripe berries are quite sweet but bland. They are an important food source for the nÄnÄ (Branta sandvicensis); the seeds are dispersed in the birds' droppings (endozoochory).
Uses
The berry is edible and flavorful.[4]
Oligomeric proanthocyanidins (OPC) can be obtained by the means of V. pahalae in vitro cell culture.[5]
