Cowberry, Lingonberry, Northern mountain cranberry, Cranberry
Vaccinium vitis-idaea
Family: Ericaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late spring. Form: Rounded.
Vaccinium vitis-idaea is an evergreen Shrub growing to 0.3 m (1ft) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 5. It is in leaf all year, in flower from May to June, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid soils and can grow in very acid soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 0.3
Where it is found
Sunny mountain meadows, peat moors and pine woods, on acid soils.
Europe, including Britain, from Iceland south and east to the Pyrenees, Macedonia, N. Asia to Japan
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
Alaska, Albania, Arctic, Armenia, Asia, Australia, Austria, Balkans, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, Caucasus, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Europe, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Mongolia, Netherlands, North America, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Scandinavia, Siberia, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Tasmania, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, USA, Yugoslavia,
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Fruit - raw or cooked. Quite pleasant to eat. An acid flavour, they are used like cranberries in preserves and are considered by many people to be superior to cranberries. The taste is better after a frost. Occasionally the plants bear 2 crops in a year. The fruit is about 6mm in diameter. A tea is made from the leaves. This should not be drunk on a regular basis because it contains the toxin 'arbutin'.
Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.
Medicine
Rating: 2
The leaves are antiseptic, astringent, diuretic, refrigerant. They are used in the treatment of gonorrhoea, arthritis, rheumatism, diabetes and diarrhoea. The leaves are gathered in early summer and dried for later use. The mature fruits are eaten fresh or dried as a remedy for diarrhoea and as a treatment for sore throats, coughs and colds. The juice has been gargled as a treatment for sore throats.
Antirheumatic: Treats rheumatism.
Antiseptic: Preventing sepsis, decay or putrefaction, it destroys or arrests the growth of micro-organisms.
Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.
Diuretic: Acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine.
Refrigerant: Cools the body.
VD: Used in the treatment of venereal disease
Other
Rating: 3
A yellow dye is obtained from the leaves and stems. A purple dye is obtained from the fruit. Can be grown as a ground cover plant, spreading by underground runners. It needs weeding for the first year or so. Plants are best spaced about 30cm apart each way.
Dye: Plants that provide dyes.
Attracts Wildlife: Plants noted for attracting wildlife
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
Ground cover: Ground Cover
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Border, Massing, Seashore. Requires a moist but freely-draining lime free soil, preferring one that is rich in peat or a light loamy soil with added leaf-mould. Prefers a very acid soil with a pH in the range of 4.5 to 6, plants soon become chlorotic when lime is present. Succeeds in full sun or light shade though it fruits better in a sunny position. Requires shelter from strong winds. Dislikes root disturbance, plants are best grown in pots until being planted out in their permanent positions. Sometimes cultivated for its edible fruit, there are some named varieties. 'Koralle' has large and conspicuous berries. The fruit hangs on the plant all winter if it is not picked. The flowers produce a great deal of nectar and are very attractive to bees. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus. Special Features:North American native, Edible, Wetlands plant, Attractive flowers or blooms. The plant is heat tolerant in zones 6 through 1. (Plant Hardiness Zones show how well plants withstand cold winter temperatures. Plant Heat Zones show when plants would start suffering from the heat. The Plant Heat Zone map is based on the number of "heat days" experienced in a given area where the temperature climbs to over 86 degrees F (30°C). At this temperature, many plants begin to suffer physiological damage. Heat Zones range from 1 (no heat days) to 12 (210 or more heat days). For example Heat Zone. 11-1 indicates that the plant is heat tolerant in zones 11 through 1.) For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. An evergreen. A clumping mat former. Forming a dense prostrate carpet with a limited spread. The root pattern is suckering with new plants from underground runners away from the plant.
Propagating it: Seed - sow late winter in a greenhouse in a lime-free potting mix and only just cover the seed. Stored seed might require a period of up to 3 months cold stratification. Another report says that it is best to sow the seed in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe. Once they are about 5cm tall, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a lightly shaded position in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5 - 8cm with a heel, August in a frame. Slow and difficult. Layering in late summer or early autumn. Another report says that spring is the best time to layer. Takes 18 months. Division of suckers in spring or early autumn.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Ground Cover;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 3-8
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
Tea should not be drunk on a regular basis because it contains the toxin 'arbutin'
Its other names
Local names
Airelle rouge, Alpine cranberry, Arandano rojo, Bagole rosse, Brushnitsa, Brusnica, Brusnika, Chervena borovinka, Cowberry, Foxberry, Hong dou yue ju, Kronsbeere, Lingon, Mirtillo rosso, Mountain cranberry, Palonka, Pohl, Poolgas, Preiselbeere, Rock cranberry,