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Empetrum nigrum L. Black crowberry
Black crowberry is native to northern portions of the northern hemisphere, and to the Falkland Islands. Grouse, ptarmigan and red-backed voles favor the high energy berries, along with reindeer, caribou, and bears. Identification: Black crowberry is a ground-hugging, dense, somewhat mosslike plant rarely more than 6″ (15 cm) in height. It favors acid soils such as those in open pine forests. Needlelike leaves, each ⅛-¼″ (3-8 mm) long, appear on long shoots. In cross section, needles are deeply grooved, with their edges rolled under. Flowers are inconspicuous, purplish brown, with one or both sexes appearing on a given plant. Fruits are juicy black berries ⅛-3/16″ (4-6 mm) around, each containing 6-9 white seeds. Edibility: Although technically edible to humans, black crowberries are not very digestible, watery, and lacking in taste. They are sometimes used, in conjunction with other berries, in pies and jellies. Online References:
Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center The USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database
4/8/2021 · Long Reach Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 6 × 10″ (16 × 24 cm)
9/25/2004 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine
8/30/2020 · Cliff Trail, Harpswell, Maine
9/16/2016 · Sieur de Monts Botanical Gardens, Bar Harbor, Maine
9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 2½″ (9.3 × 6.2 cm)
Empetrum nigrum description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 27 Sep 2023.
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9/20/2009 · Wild Gardens of Acadia, Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 17 × 12″ (44 × 29 cm)
7/13/2015 · Mt. Mansfield, Stowe/Cambridge, Vermont · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 15 cm)
8/2/2023 · Higgins Mountain, Georgetown, Maine
8/30/2020 · Cliff Trail, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (18 × 12 cm)
9/19/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 14 cm)
8/2/2023 · Higgins Mountain, Georgetown, Maine
8/11/2020 · Cliff Trail, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm)
9/18/2009 · Acadia National Park, Bar Harbor, Maine · ≈ 3½ × 2½″ (9.3 × 6.2 cm)
8/11/2020 · Cliff Trail, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm) Range:
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