Interesting... so I had to go hunting....
Huckleberries and blueberries are closely related "Vaccinium" species. Generally the wild Pacific NW species are called "Huckleberries" and the eastern species are called "Blueberries".
Blueberries are often called huckleberries, but the difference between blueberries and huckleberries is their skin and the size of their seeds. Seeds of the blueberry are smaller than the huckelberry.
In the eastern US, the blueberry is the most common of the two, while in the west, especially in the Pacific Northwest, huckleberry is much more common. The bushes and berries are very similar in appearance, and except for the slight differences in flavor, it is at times difficult to tell the difference just by looking at them, unless you have a degree in botany.
he size and sweetness of the berries is determined by environmental factors such as temperature and moisture. However, in general, wild huckleberries tend to be much smaller but much more intensely flavorful and sweet, while wild blueberries are often larger-sized but blander.
Blueberries have a large number of very tiny and soft seeds, whereas huckleberries have 10-12 larger and harder seeds. This distinction is often lost, however, since in neither case are the seeds generally noticeable when eating the fruit.
In both cases, there are varieties that are black when ripe, others that are red when ripe, and some that are blue when ripe. The Black Huckleberry is the most wide spread species of huckleberry, and as the name implies, the fully ripe berries which are usually about the size of a dried pea, are black.
Black Huckleberry bushes usually grow from 1 to 3 1/2 feet tall and have oval leaves that tend to be tacky or sticky to the touch. Often the leaves will be rather sparsely growing, and the berries are usually found on the terminal tips of the branches, partly hidden by the leaves. This plant grows well in forested, fairly dry soil, especially on sheltered slopes.
Highbush Blueberry is the most common variety of blueberry, with the bushes sometimes exceeding 10 feet in height. Highbush Blueberriesgrow in mostly wooded or very wet swampy soil.
Both huckleberries and blueberries require acidic soil to grow in, and both have varieties that are very low growing, seldom growing over a foot in height. Because of the similarity in soil needs, and the number of varieties, it isn't uncommon to find both huckleberries and blueberries growing close together.
The wild berries of both plants usually ripen between September and October, though varieties of blueberry have been cultivated to ripen somewhat earlier than this.
