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Summary
Duration	Perennial
Growth Habit	Subshrub, Shrub
U.S. Nativity	Native to U.S.
Federal T/E Status
National Wetland Indicator	UPL, FACU
Morphology/Physiology
Active Growth Period	Spring and Summer
After Harvest Regrowth Rate
Bloat	None
C:N Ratio	High
Coppice Potential	No
Fall Conspicuous	Yes
Fire Resistant	No
Flower Color	Purple
Flower Conspicuous	Yes
Foliage Color	Dark Green
Foliage Porosity Summer	Porous
Foliage Porosity Winter	Porous
Foliage Texture	Coarse
Fruit/Seed Color	Red
Fruit/Seed Conspicuous	Yes
Growth Form	Multiple Stem
Growth Rate	Moderate
Height at 20 Years, Maximum (feet)
Height, Mature (feet)	0.5
Known Allelopath	Yes
Leaf Retention	Yes
Lifespan	Long
Low Growing Grass	No
Nitrogen Fixation
Resprout Ability	No
Shape and Orientation	Prostrate
Toxicity	None
Growth Requirements
Adapted to Coarse Textured Soils	Yes
Adapted to Fine Textured Soils	No
Adapted to Medium Textured Soils	Yes
Anaerobic Tolerance	None
CaCO3 Tolerance	Medium
Cold Stratification Required	Yes
Drought Tolerance	High
Fertility Requirement	Low
Fire Tolerance	Low
Frost Free Days, Minimum	140
Hedge Tolerance	None
Moisture Use	Low
pH, Minimum	5.5
pH, Maximum	8
Planting Density per Acre, Minimum	1746
Planting Density per Acre, Maximum	10912
Precipitation, Minimum	14
Precipitation, Maximum	45
Root Depth, Minimum (inches)	10
Salinity Tolerance	Medium
Shade Tolerance	Intermediate
Temperature, Minimum (°F)	-33
Reproduction
Bloom Period	Late Spring
Commercial Availability	Routinely Available
Fruit/Seed Abundance	Medium
Fruit/Seed Period Begin	Summer
Fruit/Seed Period End	Fall
Fruit/Seed Persistence	Yes
Propagated by Bare Root	Yes
Propagated by Bulb	No
Propagated by Container	Yes
Propagated by Corm	No
Propagated by Cuttings	Yes
Propagated by Seed	No
Propagated by Sod	No
Propagated by Sprigs	No
Propagated by Tubers	No
Seed per Pound	42400
Seed Spread Rate	Slow
Seedling Vigor	Low
Small Grain	No
Vegetative Spread Rate	Moderate
Suitability/Use
Berry/Nut/Seed Product	No
Christmas Tree Product	No
Fodder Product	No
Fuelwood Product	None
Lumber Product	No
Naval Store Product	No
Nursery Stock Product	Yes
Palatable Browse Animal	Low
Palatable Graze Animal	Low
Palatable Human	No
Post Product	No
Protein Potential	Low
Pulpwood Product	No
Veneer Product	No

 

Kingdom  Plantae -- Plants

Subkingdom  Tracheobionta -- Vascular plants

Superdivision  Spermatophyta -- Seed plants

Division  Magnoliophyta -- Flowering plants

Class  Magnoliopsida -- Dicotyledons

Subclass  Dilleniidae

Order  Ericales

Family  Ericaceae -- Heath family

Genus  Arctostaphylos Adans. -- manzanita P

Species  Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (L.) Spreng. -- kinnikinnick P

 

Alternate Names

kinnikinnick

 

Uses

Bearberry serves a dual role on sandy soils, as both a beautification plant as well as a critical area stabilizer.  The thick, prostrate, vegetative mat and evergreen character are what make bearberry a very popular ground cover.  It is often planted around home sites, sand dunes, sandy banks, and commercial sites.  The fruit it produces is eaten by a few species of songbirds and game animals.  Deer will sometimes browse the foliage lightly.

 

Status

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural Resources for this plant’s current status (e.g. threatened or endangered species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

 

Description

Pure stands of bearberry can be extremely dense, with heights rarely taller than 6 inches.  Erect branching twigs emerge from long flexible prostrate stems, which are produced by single roots.  The trailing stems will layer, sending out small roots periodically.  The finely textured velvety branches are initially white to pale green, becoming smooth and red-brown with maturity.  The small solitary three scaled buds are dark brown. 

 

The simple leaves of this broadleaf evergreen are alternately arranged on branches.  Each leaf is held by a twisted leaf stalk, vertically.  The leathery dark green leaves are an inch long and have rounded tips tapering back to the base.  In fall, the leaves begin changing from a dark green to a reddish-green to purple.

 

Terminal clusters of small urn-shaped flowers bloom from May to June.  The perfect flowers are white to pink, and bear round, fleshy or mealy, bright red to pink fruits called drupes.  This smooth, glossy skinned fruit will range from 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter.  The fruit will persist on the plant into early winter.  Each drupe contains 1 to 5 hard seeds, which need to be scarified and stratified prior to germination to reduce the seed coat and break embryo dormancy.  There is an average of 40,900 cleaned seeds per pound.

 

Adaptation and Distribution

Bearberry’s native range is from Labrador to Alaska, south to Virginia, Illinois, Nebraska, and in the mountains from New Mexico north through California to Alaska.  This long-lived, low growing shrub is very cold tolerant.  This plant prefers coarse well to excessively drained soils of forests, sand dunes, bald or barren areas.  It does not tolerate moist or off-drained sites.  Although bearberry is often found growing in the open on sand dunes, it grows well under partial shade of forest canopies. 

 

For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page for this species on the PLANTS Website.

 

Establishment

Bearberry can be propagated from seeds, softwood cuttings or pre-rooted stem cuttings.  It is difficult to root this plant from bare cuttings in the greenhouse.  Scarified seed sown in early summer will improve germination the following spring, but this technique is not as reliable as cuttings.  Softwood cuttings should be harvested in late summer, and rooted stem cuttings are most successful when harvested during the dormant season.  Successfully grown seedlings or cuttings should be handled carefully in containers; bare root plantings are rarely effective.

 

Management

This shrub species requires very little maintenance once it has been established.  Annual spring applications of 10-10-10 will increase the growth rate of bearberry, but will also increase weed growth.  Weed growth must be controlled to sustain healthy stands of bearberry.

 

Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin)

There are no known varieties of bearberry available; local or regional selections are available from commercial nurseries.

 

Prepared By & Species Coordinator:

USDA NRCS Northeast Plant Materials Program

 

Edited: 31Jan2002 JLK; 31may06jsp

 

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS Web site<https://plants.usda.gov> or the Plant Materials Program Web site <https://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov>

 

 

 

Attribution:  U.S. Department of Agriculture