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

  1. ↑ Tropicos, Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton
  2. ↑ The Plant List, Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton
  3. ↑ Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
  4. ↑ Flora of North America, Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton, 1789. Cranberry, canneberge gros fruits
  5. ↑ Aiton, William. 1789. Hortus Kewensis, or, A catalogue of the plants cultivated in the Royal Botanic Garden at Kew 2: 13 and plate 7 description in Latin on page 13; full-page color illustration on plate 7 (between pages 12 + 13)
  6. ↑ Plants for a Future
  7. ↑ University of Massachusetts, Natural History of the American Cranberry, Vaccinium macrocarpon Ait.
  8. ↑ Mayo Clinic, Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon)
  9. ↑ Pérez-López FR, Haya J, Chedraui P. 2009. Vaccinium macrocarpon: an interesting option for women with recurrent urinary tract infections and other health benefits. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2009 Aug;35(4):630-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1447-0756.2009.01026.x.
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