Bog Cranberry (Lingonberry) vs Alpine Currant - TreeTime.ca

Bog Cranberry (Lingonberry) vs Alpine Currant

Ribes alpinum

Vaccinium vitis-idaea

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NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON

Alpine Currant
Bog Cranberry (Lingonberry)

Alpine Currant is a great shrub to plant along sidewalks, near building or at your property boundary as a hedge or accent species. It is widely used by commercial landscapers in parking lots and near buildings because of its hardiness, attractiveness, and pollution tolerance.

While Alpine Currant produces edible berries, they are not palatable.

Bog Cranberry is a native, ground cover species. These plants generally produce one crop per year in summer. Plants may spread 3 feet in width forming a dense mat which makes it attractive as an ornamental ground cover.

Wild crops of Bog Cranberry are harvested each year in Newfoundland (more than 200,000 lbs/yr). Harvest of wild fruit can no longer keep up with demand. In Europe, 80 million pounds per year of this crop is grown or harvested from the wild.

Bog Cranberry flowers are similar in shape to those of blueberry and may be white or pink in color. These berries are considered to be highly flavored but not as tart as cranberries.

Check out our YouTube video of this plant in the fall: Fall Bog Cranberry.

Alpine Currant Quick Facts

Bog Cranberry (Lingonberry) Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 2a
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Height: 0.2 m (0.7 ft)
Spread: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Light: any
Light: partial shade, full sun
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no
Berries: small, bright red
Berries: tart, cranberry-like
Flowers: greenish yellow and fragrant
Flowers: white or pink
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: slow
Life span: medium
Life span: medium
Suckering: low
Suckering: low




Other Names: mountain currant
Other Names: cowberry, dry ground cranberry, fox berry, foxberry, lingonberry, northern mountain cranberry, partridgeberry, rock cranberry, wolf berry, wolf-berry