Cranberry Tree Facts

Cranberry trees produce small red fruits.

Cranberry trees have several other names, including highbush cranberry, American cranberrybush, crampbark tree, rose elder, red elder, May rose, squaw bush, and whitten tree. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the cranberry tree's scientific name is viburnum opulus. The tree produces a small red edible fruit, which also makes a decent decorative plant cutting.

Medicinal Uses

Cranberry tree bark has medicinal purposes. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, cranberry tree bark helps with several ailments, including asthma, menstrual cramps and stomach cramps. The bark acts as an antispasmodic when prepared with water.

Uses as Food

Cranberries make a popular juice.

The fruits from cranberry trees are edible but somewhat sour. The USDA, therefore, recommends the fruits for jellies, sauces and juices, like the cranberry sauce common during Thanksgiving. Although cranberries do not make up any animal's primary food sources, a variety of animals occasionally eat them, including birds, rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, mice and grouse.

Other Uses

Cranberry trees make nice decorative trees, and clippings of their branches with berries on them make popular holiday decorations in the United States. The University of Missouri also suggests cranberry trees as wind-breaking trees around homes.

Physical Description

The USDA describes cranberry trees as having a maximum height of 4 meters, although they sometimes only reach small-shrub height. They are deciduous, and lose their leaves after they turn reddish in the fall. During the spring, the trees grow clusters of white flowers followed by small red fruits.

Production

Many farmers in the U.S. grow cranberries. According to the U.S. Agricultural Marketing Research Center, most of the nation's cranberries come from Wisconsin and Massachusetts. The U.S. produces hundreds of millions of pounds of cranberries each year, most of which go toward juice production. The plants often grow in man-made wetlands and are grown as small shrubs rather than tall trees.

References

• United States Department of Agriculture: Highbush Cranberry
• University of Missouri: Planning Tree Windbreaks in Missouri
• Agricultural Marketing Resource Center: Cranberries Profile