The Lingonberry is a close relative of the Cranberry and Blueberry. The plants yield hundreds of small bright red berries. Research demonstrates that the fruits have health benefits. Some health devotees even claim that they have anti-inflammatory, urinary health, and heart health properties. But most of all, in their most popular form, a jelly
made from a blend of lingonberries, sugar and vanilla, is an indispensable condiment on the Scandinavian dinner table. They grow wild on the floor of the Nordic woods, and every fall, entire families will fan out in the fir-covered forests scooping them up and taking them home. The harvested berries can simply be thrown in a freezer and used as needed by mixing at slow speed. Cooking is not needed, unless making a preserve. The plants grow 6-12 inches tall and are stoloniferous, spreading outward several feet within 6 years, if not trained. The plants grow slowly and are not invasive, as they are native to northern areas of United States, Canada and Scandinavia. The plants will begin to produce fruit in the third season and begin to spread naturally. An abundance of small, open, bell-shaped flowers appear in the late summer; green fruits appear quickly, changing to deep red in September and October. Harvesting usually occurs when 100% of the fruits are red. The plants and fruits have many uses both as an evergreen ground cover and as a food crop. The lingonberry plants can be grown as a companion plant with lowbush and highbush blueberries in the landscaped garden. An edible fruit that has many culinary uses. Zones 3-7
We recommend two or more cultivars for optimum pollination needed to obtain the largest fruits.
