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Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Also called Bearberry, Red bearberry, Mealberry, Mountain Box, Sandberry, Bear Grape, Hog Cranberry
A low, evergreen groundcover shrub native to cold northern regions, rarely above 15 cm tall, that spreads by trailing stems. It is grown mainly as a sun-loving ornamental groundcover on poor, dry, sandy or rocky soil.
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi is a plant species of the genus Arctostaphylos widely distributed across circumboreal regions of the subarctic Northern Hemisphere. Kinnikinnick (from the Unami language for smoking "mixture") is a common name in Canada and the United States. Growing up to 30 centimetres (12 inches) in height, the leaves are evergreen. The flowers are white to pink and the fruit is a red berry.
One of several related species referred to as bearberry, its specific epithet uva-ursi means "grape of the bear" in Latin, similar to the meaning of the generic epithet Arctostaphylos (Greek for "bear grapes").
One review indicated that ingestion of large doses can cause allergic reactions, with nausea and seizures, as a potential emergency condition. Preliminary studies indicate that arbutin may be toxic when ingested in high doses. Uva ursi may cause adverse effects in people with liver or kidney disease, or pregnant and breastfeeding women.
The leaves contain arbutin, which metabolizes to form hydroquinone, a potential liver toxin.
The distribution of Arctostaphylos uva-ursi is circumpolar, and it is widespread in northern latitudes, but confined to high altitudes further south:
Bearberry fruits and leaves are used by members of the Blackfeet Nation as food. While edible raw, the fruits are fairly bland that way, but can be used to make jelly. The berries were used as seasoning and cooked with meat. The young leaves can be made into tea.
Vine Hill manzanita · Little Sur manzanita · Hooker's manzanita · Montara manzanita · Morro manzanita · Sticky whiteleaf manzanita · Manzanita · Mission manzanita
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Arctostaphylos uva-ursi by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
