Cowberry
Scientific name: Vaccinium vitis-idaea L.
Diagnostic features
Erect to decumbent shrub to 30cm.
Young stems terete, minutely pubescent.
Leaves 10-30mm, obovate to elliptic, entire to obscurely crenulate, evergreen.
Flowers in short terminal racemes, pinkish white.
Fruit red, 6-10mm across, globose.
Chromosome number: 2n=24.
Habitat
Native; moors and open peaty woods.
Distribution
Locally abundant in Britain from South Wales and Central England northwards, scattered in Ireland.
Note
Superficially resembles Arctostaphylos uva-ursi vegetatively, but leaf lowerside has many minute gland-dots and very inconspicuous vein reticulation.
This species is keyed out on Page 3419 in the Text Key.
Hybrids
- Vaccinium x intermedium Ruthe (= Vaccinium vitis-idaea x Vaccinium myrtillus) occurs very locally with the parents in Staffs, Derbys and Yorks, with old or unconfirmed records elsewhere, but is absent from most areas where the parents cohabit; it is convincingly intermediate in all leaf, stem, flower and fruit characters and sets some good seed. Chromosome number: 2n=24. |
