Giant Broccoli Broom

Last summer, I was able to spend a few days in the mountains of eastern Washington.  My searches were generally disappointing- no spectacular variegations, gold boughs or dramatically weeping forms were to be seen.  My only comfort was the bounty of delicious wild fruit.  The genus Vaccinium is one of my very favorite groups of plants.  

Here in the Western US, we have a dozen or so species of Vaccinium.  The one in the picture below is Vaccinium membranaceum- though I personally think that this species forms a confusing complex with Vaccinium globulare.  Both are supposed to be common in the region- and they both look (and taste!) very similar to me.  I suspect that many of the plants we see are probably hybrids between the two.  If you've never tried them, they have a much more tart and intense flavor than blueberries (Vaccinium sp from eastern North America).  Locally, you can find them in ice cream, syrups and baked goods.  As a kid, many of my early childhood memories are trips up into the mountains to pick in the summer months.

After a long day of searching, I was heading back to Dad's house when I spotted a mass in a Douglas fir tree.  I got out and climbed up the bank to get a closer look at it. I thought it looked like a giant piece of broccoli.

As I've said before, brooms seem to occur much more frequently in this species than they do in other conifers.  I've seen a number of brooms that all look very similar.  This one is a bit more upright and robust than the others, so I think it is worth propagating and observing.  Fortunately, it is pretty close to a paved, plowed road.  I should be able to try grafting it this March.