Wild Maine Blueberries
Photo: University of Maine Cooperative Extension
Along the Blackwoods Scenic Byway – Route 182 between Franklin and Cherryfield – dramatic mountains and pristine ponds usually command attention. But in fall, it’s the ankle-high wild blueberry plant that steals the show, with acres of hillsides glowing fiery red.
Maine’s wild lowbush blueberries are native to the state’s rocky, acidic soils, appearing here naturally after glaciers scraped across the land 10,000 years ago. The Wabanaki peoples were the first to harvest the petite blue berries. They used them for food, medicine, and dye. They actively managed the barrens, too, periodically using controlled fires to encourage new growth and reduce weeds, competing plants, pests, and diseases. As commercial demand for Maine’s native blueberries grew beginning in the nineteenth century, they became one of the state’s signature agricultural industries.
Many commercial fields use mechanized harvesters today, but in small fields strewn with rocks, people still hand-harvest the sweet berries. Bent over at the waist, they use a pushing and twisting motion to propel the berries into a metal rake, which keeps their delicate skins from being crushed.
While mowing has largely replaced controlled burns, the centuries-old stewardship practices of the Wabanaki people continue to shape how Maine’s wild blueberries are managed today across tribal and nontribal operations alike.
Every summer during harvest season Mainers celebrate the native berry with festivals where people compete for the best blueberry pie and eat their fill of blueberry pancakes. And at designated barrens, families pick up rakes and buckets, gathering berries for baking, preserving, and freezers that carry the taste of summer through the winter.
Author: Stephanie Bouchard
