bog cranberry

Vaccinium oxycoccos

The bog cranberry is a small, red fruit that grows in wet, marshy areas. It's tart and delicious, perfect for making jams and sauces!

Habitat: Wetlands

Appearance

The bog cranberry is a delicate, low-growing vine with slender, trailing stems. It has tiny, leathery, dark green leaves and unique pink flowers with petals folded back, resembling a tiny bird's head. Its small, round berries ripen to a vibrant red.

KingdomPlantaePhylumTracheophytaClassMagnoliopsidaOrderEricalesFamilyEricaceaeGenusVaccinium

Photo: Christian FischerCC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsView original ↗

bog cranberry

Interesting facts

Ancient cultures used cranberry juice to create vibrant red dyes for coloring fabrics and baskets.

Bog cranberries are super sour, but they actually taste sweeter after the first frost of autumn!

Some bog cranberry vines can live for hundreds of years, slowly spreading across their boggy homes!

The plant's scientific name means 'marsh red-berry', and its flowers look like a tiny crane's head!

Special abilities

Bog cranberry can thrive in highly acidic, nutrient-poor bogs where most plants cannot, thanks to specialized root adaptations.

This hardy plant can survive harsh subarctic winters, often staying green and alive even when buried under snow and ice.

Bog cranberry has tiny, thick, waxy leaves that help it conserve water and protect against strong winds in exposed bog environments.

Its long, creeping stems grow close to the ground, allowing it to spread widely and anchor itself firmly in soft, mossy terrain.

Measurements & details

Height: 5-20 cm
Spread: 50-100 cm
Flower Size: 0.5-1 cm
Bloom Season: Late spring to early summer
Edible: Yes
Toxicity: None
Lifecycle: Perennial
Pollination Method: Insect

Ecological connections

Eaten by

American Black Bear

Ursus americanus

eats ripe, tart berries

Pollinates

Buff-tailed Bumblebee

Bombus terrestris

visits flowers for nectar

Eaten by

Sandhill Crane

Grus canadensis

forages for fallen berries

Symbiotic with

Magellanic Peatmoss

Sphagnum magellanicum

grows on acidic moss beds

Traits

Shrub

A shrub is a woody plant smaller than a tree, typically with multiple stems branching from or near the ground.

Fruit Bearing

Fruit-bearing plants produce fruits, which are the mature ovaries of flowering plants containing seeds.

Medicinal

Medicinal plants possess chemical compounds that can be used for therapeutic purposes to treat illnesses or maintain health.

Fruit Tree

A fruit tree is a perennial tree that produces fruit, which is edible to humans or animals.

Edible

Edible plants are those parts of a plant that are considered safe for human consumption.

Fall Color

Fall color refers to the seasonal change in foliage pigmentation, primarily in deciduous plants, displaying vibrant hues.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.

Also known as

No aliases listed yet.

Collections

Plants

Safety

Danger

1/5 · Very low

Always ask an adult before picking or eating wild berries.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to identify bog cranberry?

Compare how the fruit is clustered, the leaves and their arrangement, the stems and any thorns. Red, blue and black fruits grow on lots of unrelated plants, and the same color can show up on both edible and poisonous species. Berry Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

How tall is bog cranberry?

5-20 cm

How wide does bog cranberry spread?

50-100 cm

How big are the flowers on bog cranberry?

0.5-1 cm

When does bog cranberry bloom?

Late spring to early summer

Is bog cranberry edible?

Yes

Is bog cranberry toxic?

None