Lingonberries - ground cover with the taste of cranberries

Almost everybody likes cranberries, but not everybody has the right condition to grow them. If your property is not suitable for growing cranberries, you may want to try lingonberries instead. Lingonberry is a relative of cranberry, but it can grow right in your garden between other bushes or trees as ground cover. Perhaps, it is the most easy to grow bush after Aronia.

Lingonberry  (Vaccinium vitis-idaea)  is a very hardy, small evergreen bush, which belongs to the heath family. It is spread throughout all of the Northern Hemisphere. In the USA the plant prefers a cool climate of USDA zones 2 to 7.  It is related to cranberry and blueberry, in fact, it looks pretty much like cranberry to the untrained eye. In late spring it is covered in little light pink bell shaped flowers and it continues to flower throughout summer in USDA zone 4- 5.

At times you will see the red berries and flowers on the same bush. The first berries are ripening in the middle of August in the Northeastern US. The berries have sour-sweet and slightly bitter taste, which reminds of cranberry, but sweeter. Lingonberry is very popular in Northern Russia and Scandinavia where it is made into jams, and pie fillings and liqueurs.  The health benefits of lingonberry is almost the same as cranberry. Just like cranberries, lingonberries are high in vitamin C, A, E, they also contain manganese, iron, potassium, and different valuable organic acids. Compared to cranberries, lingonberries have more vitamin B3 and potassium, but less iron and sodium.

Lingonberry leaf tea is used in homeopathic medicine as antibacterial treatment and as a diuretic. Lingonberries have long shelf life and in cold climates could be stored by submerging in water.

US plant nurseries sell a variety of cultivars from scandinavian and other northern European  countries where they were cultivated for maximum berry production. I have Red Pearl (developed in Holland) and Balsgard (developed in Sweden) cultivars. Red Pearl grows up to 16 inches and Balsgard up to 8 inches. Both varieties produce an abundance of berries of similar taste and if not for the height I would not detect any difference between them. Red Pearl gives clusters of berries that are longer than Balsgard clusters. Both bushes have the same resistance to pests and diseases.

Planting site

I found that Lingonberry plants are not as fussy as cranberries. They do not have to be in a  moist site and can grow in between other plants as ground cover. In my garden they grow near rows of currants providing weed control.

Lingonberry plants require acidic soil. In the wild they grow well on the mossy floor of Northern pine forests. They can grow and fruit in partial shade. If summers are hot in your area it would be better to plant lingonberry in partial shade. In the garden it is easy to create a site for lingonberry plants.

Planting

1. To plant lingonberry bushes I removed  a rectangular layer of soil 1 foot deep and desirable length and width. Lingonberry roots are very shallow, they are right below the soil level, so you do not need to make a deep hole for planting.

2. I filled the patch with peat moss mixed with a little amount of compost and manure mixture approximately 8 parts of peat moss and 2 parts of compost/manure mixture. I used  Scotts Premium Humus and Manure mixture.

3.  Then I planted young plants spaced 2 feet apart. Usually the plants come from the nursery in 4 inch pots. Plant the bush so the soil will be at the same level as in the pot. Although lingonberry plants are self fertile, It is better to plant two varieties for cross-pollination, to achieve more berry production.

4. Then I put 1- 2 inches of mulch and watered.

I water regularly, but don’t overwater. Let the soil dry first before the next watering. In a dry summer the plants needed to be watered every 3 days.  Every spring after removing dead shoots and leaves, I spread fertilizer under the bushes. I put 1 inch of Scotts Premium Humus and Manure mixture and additional peat moss and then mulch again. It works well for the growth of new shoots and berry production.

Lingonberry plants send a lot of long roots to start new shoots. Every year I expand my  initial rectangular patch by removing soil 1 foot deep at the borders then fill it with peat moss, I will do that until a plantation will reach a desired size.

Diseases

In the humid and hot summers of  Eastern US, lingonberries do get disease. I noticed only one variety, black spots. The spots can grow so big that the whole leaf turns black, then disease spreads to other leaves and if left untreated the rest of the shoot will turn black and die.

To deal with black spot disease

1. I start with removing dead leaves on a regular basis. The mature bushes comprise a complete ground cover and sun does not penetrate inside the growth. I make it a habit to look between the bushes in order to spot any early signs of disease.

2.  In early spring when the snow is gone and I removed all the dead leaves and shoots, I spray with  Chlorothalonil such as in  OrthoMax Garden Disease Control  (I use the dose for the stone fruits). Second time I spray in the beginning of July. If the spring is particularly rainy, I may spray a few more times to stop the fungus infection. This infection is very aggressive in the spring and beginning of the summer.

4 The rest of the summer I use Copper fungicide. I spray every time after rain. If the summer is dry there may be no need to spray at all. If I have trouble controlling this disease with Copper fungicide close to harvest time, I use Captan with concentrations for blueberries. Fortunately, it happened only once and it worked. The reason I use Captan is because it could be used up to the day of harvest and it is not systemic unlike Chlorothalonil. When a plantation becomes overgrown, it is better to remove some shoots (old ones) to let the sun and air inside the bushes.

Lingonberry plants respond very well to sanitation practices and minimal fungicide treatment.

Pest.

I did not notice any insects which would bother my lingonberries. Birds on the other hand will eat all the berries if they can get at them. To protect the berries, a bird net should be used. Rabbits like to munch on the tips of the shoots. Bonide Repel All and/or Liquid Fence (The Liquid Fence, Inc) is good protection against rabbits.

Summary

Lingonberry plants are one of the easiest berry plants to grow. They are great alternative to cranberries if your property is not suitable for growing them. Lingonberry plants show good insect and disease resistance. They have the same great health benefits as cranberries and the same uses in the kitchen. Fresh lingonberries and lingonberry jam is a great garnish for roasted lamb.