In a message dated 4/8/98 10:04:41 PM, you wrote: >Production of berries by blueberry and other fruit producing species is >important to berry pickers and are of essential browse value to bears and >other wildlife. The traditional use of such plants contributes to the >income of aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities in rural Canada and >througout the boreal forest regions of the world. Not to mention, these >plants contribute to soil stability following clearcutting, due to their >dense network of roots and rhizomes (Vander Kloet and Hill 1981, Haeussler >et al. 1990). If I remember my plant ecology correctly, blueberries are nitrogen-fixing leguminous plants, and so play a key role in nutrient cycling in the forest ecosystem. David Orr
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