Description
Scarlet Ovation is a foliage-first evergreen huckleberry, compact and glossy with scarlet new growth that lights up a shaded bed.
It is a cultivated form of the Pacific Northwest native Vaccinium ovatum, selected from a branch sport found in British Columbia. The plant prefers some shade, sharp drainage, and acidic soil, then becomes notably drought tolerant once established.
The small black berries ripen in autumn and are edible, but at about 4 mm across they are a bonus rather than the crop. Deer and elk browse the foliage, so the plant needs protection where browsing pressure is high.
Overview
- It prefers some shade where every blueberry beside it needs full sun.
- It wants sharp drainage, not the even moisture a blueberry needs, and it is drought tolerant once established.
- Its own breeding record states that it is not grown for fruit production.
- Berries about 4 mm across, against twelve to eighteen for a blueberry.
- Fruit ripens in October and November, months after any blueberry.
- Sold as deer resistant in places. Deer and elk browse it freely.
- Not a wild collected plant: a 2006 branch sport of ‘Thunderbird’ found in a nursery container.
- More sun deepens the red new growth; some shade suits the plant better.
- Hardy to at least USDA Zone 7.
Growing Details
Latin Name: Vaccinium ovatum ‘Scarlet Ovation’, a cultivar of the Pacific Northwest native evergreen huckleberry
Site and Soil: Part shade to shade; sharply drained acidic soil
Hardiness: Hardy to at least USDA Zone 7
Size and Habit: About 30 in tall by 42 in wide; compact, dense, and slow growing
Foliage: Bright red new growth matures to glossy evergreen leaves
Origin: Branch mutation of ‘Thunderbird’, found in British Columbia in 2006
Native Range: Coastal British Columbia to California, west of the Cascades
Fruit: Small purplish-black berries; grown primarily for foliage
Ripening Time: Mid to late season, and the species ripens around October and November, months after any blueberry
Water: Drought tolerant once established, which no blueberry is
Wildlife: Flowers feed pollinators; berries feed birds and mammals
Propagation: Cuttings or tissue culture; US Plant Patent 25,067
Additional Notes
- Grower’s Insight: Treat it as an evergreen huckleberry: sharp drainage, some shade, and patience with its slow growth.
- Regional Insight: This Zone 7 maritime West Coast native takes coastal salt spray but not the cold of northern interior regions.
- Scarlet Ovation is protected by US Plant Patent 25,067. Propagation is prohibited while the patent runs.
- Explore more huckleberries in the collection: Huckleberries
