The highbush cranberry is a native shrub of easy culture which combines the advantages of edible fruit with year-round ornamental value. Although the common name for this plant describes it as a cranberry, it is actually a member of the botanical family known as Caprifoliaceae, and is more closely related to a honeysuckle, than to the cranberries eaten with the traditional Thanksgiving turkey.

The botanical name for the shrub is Viburnum trilobum, which describes the three-lobed leaves. In June, the shrubs produce flat-topped masses of white flowers, which subsequently give rise to clusters of lustrous red fruit. The flower clusters are a distinctive feature of this plant because each cluster is composed of two different types of flowers. The showy flowers found around the outside of each group are sterile, while the less conspicuous flowers toward the centre of the cluster are fertile. The sterile flowers serve only to attract pollinating insects to the less conspicuous fertile flowers. As the fruit clusters ripen in mid-summer, they form attractive accents against the green three-lobed leaves. As an added bonus, the fruit clusters remain on the plant through winter where their vivid red colour brightens the landscape and they serve as a food source for a variety of birds and mammals. Deer, moose, foxes, raccoons, chipmunks, squirrels, skunks, mice, rabbits, grouse, pheasants, robins, cedar waxwings and other songbirds all consume the fruit.

Native highbush cranberry plants can be found growing across North American from B.C. to Newfoundland and into the northern United States. Selections made from these plants on the basis of superior fruiting characteristics include: `Andrews,' `Hahs,' `Hogg's Red,' `Manitou,' `Phillips' and `Wentworth'. The cultivars `Compactum' and `Garry Pink' are grown for their ornamental value. The sterile flowers of `Garry Pink' are distinctive because of their delicate shell pink colour. Horticultural selections of highbush cranberry may also be derived from the European highbush cranberry (Viburnum opulus), which is similar in appearance to the North American species, and therefore easily confused with the native Viburnum trilobum. Fruit of the European species tends to be bitter and unpleasant tasting, so cultivars derived from the European species are grown strictly as ornamentals. Cultivars include `Nanum,' `Roseum' and `Sterile.' As with many introduced plants, the European highbush cranberry is not quite as well- suited to our climate, is more susceptible to attack by aphids, and may not develop as intense a fall coloration as members of the native species.

Cultivation is simple for the native highbush cranberry. The plants are tolerant of a wide variety of soil types, but do best where the soil is consistently moist and well-drained; they may grow best in soil that is slightly acidic (pH 6.0-6.5). Because the fibrous roots of this shrub lie near the soil surface, cultivation for weeds should be shallow, and the use of a mulch will be beneficial. Low to medium-high soil fertility levels are acceptable. A yearly application of compost or well-rotted manure will maintain growth and fruit yields. Heavy applications of nitrogen fertilizers will encourage soft sucker growth and fewer flowers. The plants tolerate shade, but flowering, fruiting and foliage colour will be more striking on those plants exposed to full sunshine.

As a native species, Viburnum trilobum is well adapted to the local selection of insect and disease pests, and therefore relatively trouble-free in cultivation. Only occasionally will bacterial leaf spot, powdery mildew, shoot blight, tarnished plant bugs or thrips be a problem. It is worthwhile noting that the shrub is sensitive to sulphur-based fungicides which can cause blackening of the leaves and rapid defoliation.

Pruning of a highbush cranberry should be kept to a minimum. Unless stems are damaged or diseased, light renewal pruning should be all that is needed. This means simply cutting out a few of the largest stems at ground level on an annual basis. Removal of the oldest stems will encourage new shoots to emerge from the ground, keeping the plant young and vigorous. Any additional shaping or shortening of stems will simply detract from the shrub's natural form, and should be avoided. Pruning is best done immediately following flowering.

The highbush cranberry can be propagated through hardwood and softwood cuttings, layering, crown division and by seed. Softwood cuttings taken in mid-June through early-July root easily if treated with rooting powder for woody plants, and placed in a pot containing moist peat moss or perlite, covered with a clear plastic bag and held in bright indirect light. The seeds are difficult to germinate; in the wild, seeds don't germinate until the second spring following the ripening of the fruit.

The highbush cranberry has a long tradition of use both as an edible fruit and as a traditional medicine. The fruit is commonly gathered from wild stands in late August or early September for use in sauces, jellies and juices. The ripe fruit are a bright, glowing red when mature. Each contains a single, flattened, hard seed and is botanically similar to a small cherry. When fresh, the fruit are hard, very sour (acidic) and high in pectin. If picked after a heavy frost, the fruit are softer and more palatable, although during cooking, they do develop a somewhat musty odour that people find objectionable. The fruit is best when picked slightly under-ripe, and prepared as sauce or jelly. The flavour has been favourably compared to that of the true cranberry. Highbush cranberry sauces and jellies make delicious condiments for meat and game. Medicinally, preparations of the fruit have been used as an astringent to treat swollen glands. The bark yields a preparation (containing a bitter compound called viburnine) that has been used as an apparently effective antispasmodic for relief of menstrual and stomach cramps, and asthma. The antispasmodic properties were independently known to European, Native American, and Asian peoples