Japanese name: アクシバ（灰汁柴） Scientific name:Vaccinium japonicum var. japonicum
[Overview]
A deciduous shrub 0.5–1 m tall, found at forest edges.
Young branches are green and ridged.
The leaves are simple and alternate, elliptic, 1.5–6 cm long and 0.7–2.5 cm wide, thin, and slightly whitish on the underside.
The leaf margin has fine serrations.
There is a very short petiole.
The flowers are borne singly in the leaf axils and face downward.
The flowers are pale reddish purple; the corolla is deeply 4-lobed, and the lobes curl back in a spiral.
There are 8 stamens, which surround the style and protrude out of the flower.
The fruit is spherical, 0.5 cm in diameter, and ripens red.
[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed.
Cuttings are also possible, although the rooting rate is poor.
For seed, wash fully ripe fruit to remove the pulp and sow immediately, or bury the seeds in moistened vermiculite or similar so they do not dry out and store them in a cool, dark place; take them out the following spring and wash them thoroughly once more before sowing.
It prefers an environment that is well drained and moisture-retentive, in sun to partial shade without afternoon sun.
It prefers acidic soil.
Water thoroughly when the soil surface dries.
Apply organic fertilizer in winter, and after flowering place slow-release chemical fertilizer on the soil as a thank-you fertilizer.
There are no particular pests or diseases.
