Although deer sometimes browse the leaves and twigs, it is not one of their preferred food sources. As most hikers will attest, sweet-tart huckleberries satisfy human hunger, too. Traditionally, many Native American groups along the Pacific Coast harvested evergreen and other huckleberries to eat fresh and to preserve for winter. The berries are rich in vitamin C and natural sugars. Today, huckleberry connoisseurs stir up jams, sauces, pies, wines and other delicacies, or preserve the berries by canning, freezing or drying them.
Florists collect evergreen huckleberry boughs to use in flower arrangements and holiday decorations.
In the home landscape, evergreen huckleberry shrubs may be arranged and clipped to form neat hedges, or allowed to grow naturally as a ground cover in the sun, where their size is dwarfed. I've found that when planted in clay soil as they are in my yard, they benefit from an organic mulch and supplemental water during summer dry spells. The only insect pests I've noticed on our evergreen huckleberries are black vine weevils, which chew the foliage. These are the same insects that often disfigure rhododendron leaves. From late spring through summer, adult beetles remain underground during the day and emerge at night to feed.