7,617
edits
Changes
From Gardenology.org - Plant Encyclopedia and Gardening Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to searchno edit summary
{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''
| status = LC
| image = Vaccinium vitis-idaea 20060824 003.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Foliage and fruit of var. ''vitis-idaea''
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Ericales]]
| familia = [[Ericaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Vaccinium]]''
| species = '''''V. vitis-idaea'''''
| binomial = ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
The '''''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''''' – often called '''lingonberry''' or '''cowberry''', also called '''foxberry''', '''mountain cranberry''', '''lowbush cranberry''', and '''partridgeberry''' (in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]]) – is a small evergreen [[shrub]] in the [[flowering plant]] family [[Ericaceae]] that bears edible [[fruit]].
It is seldom cultivated, but the fruits are commonly collected in the wild. The native habitat is the circumboreal [[forest]]s of northern [[Eurasia]] and [[North America]], extending from [[temperate]] into [[subarctic]] climates.
==Varieties==
There are two very similar regional [[variety (biology)|varieties]] of ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' in Eurasia and North America:
*''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' var. ''vitis-idaea'' L., Eurasia. Leaves 10–25 mm long.
*''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' var. ''minus'' Lodd., North America. Leaves 7–20 mm long.
==Morphology==
[[Image:Vaccinium vitis-idaea.jpg|left|thumb|Flowers of var. ''vitis-idaea'']]
Cowberry shrubs of both varieties are typically 10–40 cm in height and have a compact habit. They prefer some shade (as from a forest canopy) and constantly moist, [[acid|acidic]] soil. Nutrient-poor soils are tolerated but not [[base (chemistry)|alkaline]] soils. They are extremely hardy, tolerating −40 °C or lower, but grow poorly where summers are hot.
The plant is only semi-woody but keeps its leaves all winter even in the coldest years, unusual for a broadleaf plant, though they are usually protected from severe cold by [[snow]] cover. The plant spreads by underground [[rhizomes]]. The bell-shaped white [[flower]]s are produced in the early summer. The fruit, actually a [[false berry]], is red and acidic, ripening in late summer to autumn.
The species resembles the related and similar [[cranberry]] (''Vaccinium oxycoccus, V. microcarpum'' and ''V. macrocarpon''), differing mainly in having white (not pink) flowers, with the petals partially enclosing the stamens and stigma (the petals are reflexed backwards in cranberries), and rounder, less [[pear]]-shaped berries. Other related plants in the genus ''[[Vaccinium]]'' include [[blueberry|blueberries]], [[bilberry|bilberries]], and [[huckleberry|huckleberries]].
==Etymology==
The name "lingonberry" originates from the Swedish word ''lingon'' for the native cowberry. Because the names mountain cranberry and lowbush cranberry perpetuate the longstanding confusion between the cranberry and the lingonberry, some botanists have suggested that these names should be avoided. Many restaurants and nutritionists however use and recommend these alternate names to help increase acceptance and consumption of this delicacy and exceptionally nutritious fruit that is unknown in many English-speaking countries.{{fact|date=July 2007}}
In the last [[canto]] of the Finnish [[national epic]], [[Kalevala]], ''Son of Marjatta'', maid Marjatta becomes pregnant from eating an enchanted lingonberry.
==Uses==
[[Image:LingonberryJam.jpeg|thumb|right|[[Lingonberry jam]] on [[toast]]]]
Lingonberries collected in the wild are a popular fruit in northern, central and eastern [[Europe]], notably in [[Finland]], [[Norway]], [[Denmark]], [[Sweden]], the Baltic Countries, [[Poland]], [[Slovakia]], and [[Karelia]] ([[Russia]]), where they can be picked on both public and private lands in accordance with the European tradition of [[Freedom to roam|"everyman's rights"]]. Because the berries are quite tart, they are almost always cooked and sweetened before eating in the form of [[lingonberry jam]], [[compote]], [[juice]], or syrup. The raw fruits are also frequently simply mashed with sugar, which preserves most of their nutrients and flavor and even enables storing them at room temperature (in closed but not necessarily sealed containers). Cowberries served this way or as compote often accompany [[game (food)|game]] meats and [[liver]] dishes. In Sweden and Norway, reindeer steak is traditionally served with gravy and cowberry sauce. Cowberry preserve is commonly eaten with meatballs and potatoes in Sweden. A traditional Finnish dish is [[sautéed reindeer]] (''poronkäristys'') with mashed potatoes and cowberries, either cooked or raw with sugar. In Poland, cowberries are often mixed with [[pear]]s to create a sauce served with poultry or game. Cowberries can also be used to replace red currants when creating the [[Cumberland Sauce|Cumberland sauce]] to give it a more sophisticated taste.
Cowberries are also popular as a wild picked fruit in [[North America]] in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]], where they are locally known as partridgeberries. In this region they are also incorporated into jams, syrups, and baked goods.
Lingonberries are a staple item in Sweden, and at the [[Sweden|Swedish]] retailer [[IKEA]]. It is often sold as jam and juice in the store and as a key ingredient in dishes.
Cowberries are an important food for [[bear]]s and [[fox]]es. [[Caterpillar]]s of the [[Coleophoridae]] case-bearer moths ''[[Coleophora glitzella]]'', ''[[Coleophora idaeella]]'' and ''[[Coleophora vitisella]]'' are not known to eat anything but lingonberry leaves.
===Nutritional properties===
Cowberries contain plentiful organic acids, [[vitamin C]], [[vitamin A|provitamin A]] (as beta carotene), [[vitamin B|B vitamins]] (B<sub>1</sub>, B<sub>2</sub>, B<sub>3</sub>), and the elements [[potassium]], [[calcium]], [[magnesium]], and [[phosphorus]]. In addition to these healthful nutrients, cowberries also contain [[phytochemical]]s that are thought to counteract urinary-tract infections, and the seeds are rich in [[Omega-3_fatty_acid#Botanical_sources|Omega-3 fatty acids]].
Cowberries are used in [[herbal medicine]].{{fact|date=July 2007}} They were a major component in keeping people healthy in Sweden through the long winters without fresh vegetables. A coarse porridge with fat salt pork and lingonberry preserve was a classic meal of the winter, and a large crock of the berries preserved with sugar would be found in every larder. Owing to their high content of [[benzoic acid]], they have the additional virtue of being able to be made into preserve without boiling.{{fact|date=July 2007}}
==External links and references==
*[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=VAVIM ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''] at PLANTS Database ([[Natural Resources Conservation Service]])
*[http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/vacvit/all.html ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''] at [[USDA Forest Service]]
{{commons|Vaccinium vitis-idaea}}
{{wikispecies|Vaccinium vitis-idaea}}
<gallery>
Image:Vaccinium_vitis-idaea_L..jpg|19th century illustration
</gallery>
[[Category:Ericaceae]]
[[Category:Alpine flora]]
[[Category:Flora of Greenland]]
[[Category:Fruit]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Estonia]]
[[Category:Flora of the United Kingdom]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''
| status = LC
| image = Vaccinium vitis-idaea 20060824 003.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| image_caption = Foliage and fruit of var. ''vitis-idaea''
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Ericales]]
| familia = [[Ericaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Vaccinium]]''
| species = '''''V. vitis-idaea'''''
| binomial = ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
The '''''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''''' – often called '''lingonberry''' or '''cowberry''', also called '''foxberry''', '''mountain cranberry''', '''lowbush cranberry''', and '''partridgeberry''' (in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]]) – is a small evergreen [[shrub]] in the [[flowering plant]] family [[Ericaceae]] that bears edible [[fruit]].
It is seldom cultivated, but the fruits are commonly collected in the wild. The native habitat is the circumboreal [[forest]]s of northern [[Eurasia]] and [[North America]], extending from [[temperate]] into [[subarctic]] climates.
==Varieties==
There are two very similar regional [[variety (biology)|varieties]] of ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' in Eurasia and North America:
*''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' var. ''vitis-idaea'' L., Eurasia. Leaves 10–25 mm long.
*''Vaccinium vitis-idaea'' var. ''minus'' Lodd., North America. Leaves 7–20 mm long.
==Morphology==
[[Image:Vaccinium vitis-idaea.jpg|left|thumb|Flowers of var. ''vitis-idaea'']]
Cowberry shrubs of both varieties are typically 10–40 cm in height and have a compact habit. They prefer some shade (as from a forest canopy) and constantly moist, [[acid|acidic]] soil. Nutrient-poor soils are tolerated but not [[base (chemistry)|alkaline]] soils. They are extremely hardy, tolerating −40 °C or lower, but grow poorly where summers are hot.
The plant is only semi-woody but keeps its leaves all winter even in the coldest years, unusual for a broadleaf plant, though they are usually protected from severe cold by [[snow]] cover. The plant spreads by underground [[rhizomes]]. The bell-shaped white [[flower]]s are produced in the early summer. The fruit, actually a [[false berry]], is red and acidic, ripening in late summer to autumn.
The species resembles the related and similar [[cranberry]] (''Vaccinium oxycoccus, V. microcarpum'' and ''V. macrocarpon''), differing mainly in having white (not pink) flowers, with the petals partially enclosing the stamens and stigma (the petals are reflexed backwards in cranberries), and rounder, less [[pear]]-shaped berries. Other related plants in the genus ''[[Vaccinium]]'' include [[blueberry|blueberries]], [[bilberry|bilberries]], and [[huckleberry|huckleberries]].
==Etymology==
The name "lingonberry" originates from the Swedish word ''lingon'' for the native cowberry. Because the names mountain cranberry and lowbush cranberry perpetuate the longstanding confusion between the cranberry and the lingonberry, some botanists have suggested that these names should be avoided. Many restaurants and nutritionists however use and recommend these alternate names to help increase acceptance and consumption of this delicacy and exceptionally nutritious fruit that is unknown in many English-speaking countries.{{fact|date=July 2007}}
In the last [[canto]] of the Finnish [[national epic]], [[Kalevala]], ''Son of Marjatta'', maid Marjatta becomes pregnant from eating an enchanted lingonberry.
==Uses==
[[Image:LingonberryJam.jpeg|thumb|right|[[Lingonberry jam]] on [[toast]]]]
Lingonberries collected in the wild are a popular fruit in northern, central and eastern [[Europe]], notably in [[Finland]], [[Norway]], [[Denmark]], [[Sweden]], the Baltic Countries, [[Poland]], [[Slovakia]], and [[Karelia]] ([[Russia]]), where they can be picked on both public and private lands in accordance with the European tradition of [[Freedom to roam|"everyman's rights"]]. Because the berries are quite tart, they are almost always cooked and sweetened before eating in the form of [[lingonberry jam]], [[compote]], [[juice]], or syrup. The raw fruits are also frequently simply mashed with sugar, which preserves most of their nutrients and flavor and even enables storing them at room temperature (in closed but not necessarily sealed containers). Cowberries served this way or as compote often accompany [[game (food)|game]] meats and [[liver]] dishes. In Sweden and Norway, reindeer steak is traditionally served with gravy and cowberry sauce. Cowberry preserve is commonly eaten with meatballs and potatoes in Sweden. A traditional Finnish dish is [[sautéed reindeer]] (''poronkäristys'') with mashed potatoes and cowberries, either cooked or raw with sugar. In Poland, cowberries are often mixed with [[pear]]s to create a sauce served with poultry or game. Cowberries can also be used to replace red currants when creating the [[Cumberland Sauce|Cumberland sauce]] to give it a more sophisticated taste.
Cowberries are also popular as a wild picked fruit in [[North America]] in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]], where they are locally known as partridgeberries. In this region they are also incorporated into jams, syrups, and baked goods.
Lingonberries are a staple item in Sweden, and at the [[Sweden|Swedish]] retailer [[IKEA]]. It is often sold as jam and juice in the store and as a key ingredient in dishes.
Cowberries are an important food for [[bear]]s and [[fox]]es. [[Caterpillar]]s of the [[Coleophoridae]] case-bearer moths ''[[Coleophora glitzella]]'', ''[[Coleophora idaeella]]'' and ''[[Coleophora vitisella]]'' are not known to eat anything but lingonberry leaves.
===Nutritional properties===
Cowberries contain plentiful organic acids, [[vitamin C]], [[vitamin A|provitamin A]] (as beta carotene), [[vitamin B|B vitamins]] (B<sub>1</sub>, B<sub>2</sub>, B<sub>3</sub>), and the elements [[potassium]], [[calcium]], [[magnesium]], and [[phosphorus]]. In addition to these healthful nutrients, cowberries also contain [[phytochemical]]s that are thought to counteract urinary-tract infections, and the seeds are rich in [[Omega-3_fatty_acid#Botanical_sources|Omega-3 fatty acids]].
Cowberries are used in [[herbal medicine]].{{fact|date=July 2007}} They were a major component in keeping people healthy in Sweden through the long winters without fresh vegetables. A coarse porridge with fat salt pork and lingonberry preserve was a classic meal of the winter, and a large crock of the berries preserved with sugar would be found in every larder. Owing to their high content of [[benzoic acid]], they have the additional virtue of being able to be made into preserve without boiling.{{fact|date=July 2007}}
==External links and references==
*[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=VAVIM ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''] at PLANTS Database ([[Natural Resources Conservation Service]])
*[http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/shrub/vacvit/all.html ''Vaccinium vitis-idaea''] at [[USDA Forest Service]]
{{commons|Vaccinium vitis-idaea}}
{{wikispecies|Vaccinium vitis-idaea}}
<gallery>
Image:Vaccinium_vitis-idaea_L..jpg|19th century illustration
</gallery>
[[Category:Ericaceae]]
[[Category:Alpine flora]]
[[Category:Flora of Greenland]]
[[Category:Fruit]]
[[Category:Flora of Europe]]
[[Category:Flora of Estonia]]
[[Category:Flora of the United Kingdom]]
