Lingonberry, mountain cranberry, cowberry • Vaccinium vitis-idaea
Identification
Lingonberry is a dwarfed, mat-forming shrub with trailing to somewhat upright stems growing 5-25 cm tall. Its leaves, which alternate along the stem, are evergreen, narrowly oval-shaped, and rounded with a small notch at the tip. The tops of the leaves have a sheen and the undersides are paler with black dots. The pink to white flowers occur singularly or in clusters at the tips of branches, and are bell-shaped with four lobes. The fruits are typical for a cranberry: deep red, sour, and spherical.
Habitat & Range
Lingonberry occurs in a variety of habitats, including moist to dry forests, bogs, thickets, open rocky slopes, heathlands, and tundra from low to alpine elevations. Lingonberry is a common shrub in northern BC, and is present but infrequent along the Central Coast, south coast, and northern Vancouver Island. It is a circumpolar specie found across much of northern North America and Eurasia.
Similar Species
Lingonberry can appear similar to evergreen huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum). The latter usually has sharply-toothed and pointed leaves that lack black dots on the underside. Leaf arrangement along the stem also differs between the two species. When fruiting the species can be easily differentiated by berry colour - those of evergreen huckleberry are purplish-black.
Human Uses
Lingonberries are mostly harvested locally, though commercial cultivation does exist. While the tart berries are best harvested after the first frost of fall they can be found on the plant throughout winter. This berry is a traditional food and medicinal ingredient for more northern First Nations groups. One interesting way of eating lingonberries is to whip them up with snow to make a dessert - this is a traditional dish of the Nisga’a First Nation. Click here for more information on storage, uses, nutrition, and a recipe.
iNaturalist
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/56312-Vaccinium-vitis-idaea
Lingonberry is a dwarfed, mat-forming shrub with trailing to somewhat upright stems growing 5-25 cm tall. Its leaves, which alternate along the stem, are evergreen, narrowly oval-shaped, and rounded with a small notch at the tip. The tops of the leaves have a sheen and the undersides are paler with black dots. The pink to white flowers occur singularly or in clusters at the tips of branches, and are bell-shaped with four lobes. The fruits are typical for a cranberry: deep red, sour, and spherical.
Habitat & Range
Lingonberry occurs in a variety of habitats, including moist to dry forests, bogs, thickets, open rocky slopes, heathlands, and tundra from low to alpine elevations. Lingonberry is a common shrub in northern BC, and is present but infrequent along the Central Coast, south coast, and northern Vancouver Island. It is a circumpolar specie found across much of northern North America and Eurasia.
Similar Species
Lingonberry can appear similar to evergreen huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum). The latter usually has sharply-toothed and pointed leaves that lack black dots on the underside. Leaf arrangement along the stem also differs between the two species. When fruiting the species can be easily differentiated by berry colour - those of evergreen huckleberry are purplish-black.
Human Uses
Lingonberries are mostly harvested locally, though commercial cultivation does exist. While the tart berries are best harvested after the first frost of fall they can be found on the plant throughout winter. This berry is a traditional food and medicinal ingredient for more northern First Nations groups. One interesting way of eating lingonberries is to whip them up with snow to make a dessert - this is a traditional dish of the Nisga’a First Nation. Click here for more information on storage, uses, nutrition, and a recipe.
iNaturalist
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/56312-Vaccinium-vitis-idaea
References
Cowberry Vaccinium vitis-idaea. Nature Gate - LuontoPortti. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea). ARKive.org. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Pojar, J. and MacKinnon, A. (1994). Plants of Coastal British Columbia. Vancouver, BC: Lone Pine Publishing. P. 59.
Pojar and Mackinnon (2013). Alpine Plants of British Columbia, Alberta and Northwest North America. Vancouver, B.C.: Lone Pine Publishing. P. 81.
Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Ed.). E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Authors and editors of page
Alanah Nasadyk, Kelly Fretwell, and Brian Starzomski (2014).
Cowberry Vaccinium vitis-idaea. Nature Gate - LuontoPortti. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitis-idaea). ARKive.org. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Pojar, J. and MacKinnon, A. (1994). Plants of Coastal British Columbia. Vancouver, BC: Lone Pine Publishing. P. 59.
Pojar and Mackinnon (2013). Alpine Plants of British Columbia, Alberta and Northwest North America. Vancouver, B.C.: Lone Pine Publishing. P. 81.
Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Ed.). E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. Accessed 28/10/2014.
Authors and editors of page
Alanah Nasadyk, Kelly Fretwell, and Brian Starzomski (2014).