Plants

Cranberry

Cranberry (Vaccinium oxycoccus)

Cranberry is a characteristic plant of Irelands raised bogs although also present on blanket bogs. This is the native European species: it should not be confused with the American Vaccinium macrocarpon, a cultivated species that is the source of most commercial cranberry sauce and juice. The slight stems of the Cranberry plant typically creep across the carpet of Sphagnum mosses and are covered in many tiny oblong leaves. They are particularly discreet until they produce their pretty, pink flower in summer followed by the disproportionately large fruit in September. These fruits are traditionally gathered in time for Christmas for the making of cranberry sauce.

Click here to view a distribution map of the Cranberry in Northern Ireland.