Bilberry

Found in coniferous forests, the bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus) is a common plant throughout Finland. Bilberry is a low-growing perennial shrub with angular, green stalks about 10–30 cm tall. The leaves are oval and tapered and have saw-toothed edges, and they fall off before winter.

The bilberry flowers in May-July. The delicate pink, bell-shaped flowers sit individually on the axil. The berry is dark blue, both inside and outside. The berry is ball-shaped and has a waxy protective coat. The berries may also be black and shiny, in which case the protective coat is missing. In the vernacular, these types of bilberries were called tarry bilberries.

The bilberry thrives in mossy and semi-dry heathlands with rich grass-herb vegetation, but also in slightly more dry and harsh heathlands in Northern Finland. The bilberry does not grow in direct sunlight and requires shade. Look for berries on north-facing slopes, in hollows formed in bedrock, near forest ponds and on the edges of felling sites.

Bilberries are picked from late July to early September. You may be able to find berries even later, but their taste is at its best at the beginning of the bilberry season. The harvest may be reduced by night frost during flowering. The number of pollinators visiting the flowers has a crucial impact on the size of the harvest. If the early summer is cool, insects avoid flying and the pollination is unsuccessful. In the winter, the blanket of snow protects the shrubs from being damaged by frost.

The bog bilberry (Vaccinium uliginosum) is often found near bilberry. Its berries are larger than bilberries and their fruit pulp has a pale colour. The brown stems of the bog bilberry often grow taller than the green stems of the bilberry. The matte-surfaced leaves are blue-green. Bog bilberries taste milder than bilberries but are a great pairing with more strong-tasting berries.

Bilberry contains vitamin E and some vitamin C. It is a great source of nutritional fibre, even better than fruits. Bilberries are called a superfood because they have the highest polyphenol content of all the wild berries. Bilberries have an especially high anthocyanin content. Studies show that anthocyanins lower blood pressure, improve circulation and boost insulin resistance, and their health effects are a continuing topic of research. Bilberries may also have a positive impact on memory function, digestion and eye health.

The bilberry has a wide range of uses in baked goods, kissels, porridge and desserts, for example. The berries can also be added to salads or used for dry-curing fish. Bilberries taste best when eaten fresh with milk, viili (a traditional Finnish fermented milk product) or talkkuna (a traditional Finnish mixed flour dish). Pour boiling milk on top of frozen berries to make a delicacy that brings to mind the fresh taste of summer.

The fastest way to preserve bilberries is to freeze them whole without adding sugar. Bilberries can also be made into juice and jam to preserve them for winter. Jam made of bilberries and raspberries, known in Finland as queen’s jam, is particularly tasty. The food industry uses bilberries for juices, jams, fruit concentrates, dried berries, berry powders, cereal products and dairy products.

Bilberry leaves have a pleasant, fresh taste, making them a great addition to salads or tea blends. The best time to harvest the leaves is June-July. If the leaves are too young when harvested, they grow dark as they dry. Forage for bilberry leaves in places where the berry yield is low. The leaves are preserved by drying. We recommend mixing them with other herbs as tea made of only bilberry leaves will lack aroma.