Vaccinium macrocarpon

Large cranberry, American Cranberry, Bearberry
Vaccinium macrocarpon
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Ericaceae
Genus: Vaccinium
Subgenus: Oxycoccos
Species: V. macrocarpon
Binomial name
Vaccinium macrocarpon
Aiton 1789
Synonyms[1][2]

Vaccinium macrocarpon (also called large cranberry, American cranberry and bearberry) is a North American species of cranberry of the subgenus Oxycoccus and genus Vaccinium.

Vaccinium macrocarpon is native to central and eastern Canada (Ontario to Newfoundland), and the northeastern and north-central United States (Northeast, Great Lakes Region, and Appalachians as far south as North Carolina and Tennessee).[3] It is also naturalized in parts of Europe and in scattered locations along the Pacific Coast of North America (from California to British Columbia).

Vaccinium macrocarpon is a shrub, often ascending (trailing along the surface of the ground for some distance but then curing upwards). It produces white or pink flowers followed by sour-tasting red or pink berries 9–14 mm (0.36-0.56 inches) across.[4][5]

The species is grown commercially for its edible berries.[6] Many of these are grown in artificial ponds called cranberry bogs.[7] There is some evidence suggesting that the berries or their juice is useful in treating certain urinary tract infections.[8][9]

See also

References

Wikispecies has information related to: Vaccinium macrocarpon
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vaccinium macrocarpon.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, February 27, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.