He has incorporated the genes of at least ten species into the genetic background of the highbush blueberry and some of his creations have been released as cultivars. Other unreleased hybrids should provide breeders with a diverse combination of valuable characteristics such as tolerance to mineral soils, disease and pest resistance, drought tolerance and fruit quality. His inter-species hybrids can be used in both northern and southern breeding programs, as winter hardy types have been recovered from backcross populations that contain high percentages of southern derived genes. Vaccinium Stamineum L. is an extremely polymorphic diploid species adapted to acidic dry uplands in eastern North America. It is insect pollinated and has unique floral morphology including open aestivation of flowers in the bud.
Plant habit varies from stoloniferous to essentially monostem.
The skin of the fruit typically has a bitter taste although the degree of bitterness varies within and among localities. Flavor, anthocyanins and flavnols of fruit are very similar to cranberry. Unlike cranberry, soluble solid content can be quite high. In the southern US the fruits have been used locally for jams, jellies and pies for many years. It appears that V. Stamineum has potential as a small food crop, especially for use in processed products.