Bilberry is a name given to several species of shubs of the GenusVaccinium (Family Ericaceae) that bear tasty fruitss. Included are Vaccinium myrtillus L. (also called Blaeberry, Whortleberry, Winberry, Myrtle Blueberry, and probably other names regionally), Vaccinium uliginosum L. (Northern Bilberry or Bog Blueberry), Vaccinium caespitosum Michx. (Dwarf Bilberry), and Vaccinium deliciosum Piper (Cascade Bilberry). Bilberries are found in damp, acidic soils throughout the temperate and subarctic regions of world. They are closely related to blueberries and cranberries —also in the Genus Vaccinium—of North America where plants similar to bilberries are called huckleberries.
Bilberries are rarely cultivated but fruits are sometimes collected from wild plants growing on public lands, notably in Scandinavia. Vaccinium myrtillus fruit is called blåbär in Swedish and mustikka in Finnish; Vaccinium uliginosum fruit is odon in Swedish and juolukka in Finnish. The fruits are eaten fresh or made into jams, juices or pies. They have therapeutic uses in herbal medicine.
