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The southern highbush (Vaccinium mostly corymbosum) blueberry cultivars Jubilee, Magnolia, and Pearl River, released by the USDA in 1994, were compared with `Premier' and `Climax', two widely planted rabbiteye (V. ashei) cultivars, on the basis of flowering and harvest dates, yield, and physical and chemical quality parameters. The southern highbush cultivars flowered later and ripened at least 1 week before `Climax', one of the earliest rabbiteyes. `Pearl River' berries had less waxy “bloom” and appeared almost black when fully ripe; they had significantly less anthocyanins than the other cultivars compared. `Premier' was lower in titratable acidity and higher in sugars than the southern highbush cultivars. Although data analysis indicated statistical differences in glucose and fructose concentrations among the other four cultivars, these differences were not pronounced. Based on the quality factors used in this study, the southern highbush cultivars compared acceptably to the rabbiteye cultivars.