Gaultheria procumbens (Creeping Wintergreen)

Gaultheria procumbens

Gaultheria procumbens L.

Creeping Wintergreen, Wintergreen, Eastern Teaberry, Checkerberry, Boxberry, American Wintergreen

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Ericales	Tea, persimmon, blueberry, Brazil nut, azalea, many others
Family	Ericaceae	Heath or heather family
Genus	Gaultheria	After Jean François Gaulthier (1708-1756), French-Canadian botanist of Quebec, appointed King’s physician for Quebec in 1741
Species	procumbens	With trailing, prostrate stems

About plant names...

Creeping wintergreen is a native of northeastern North America, and as far south as Alabama.

Identification: Creeping wintergreen is a low, spreading plant, typically 4-6" (10-15 cm) tall, sometimes as low as 1" (2.5 cm). Leaves are oval, evergreen, dark in color, ¾-1¾" (2-5 cm) long and ⅜-¾" (1-2 cm) across. When broken, the leaves smell of wintergreen. Flowers are about ¼" (6.3 mm) long, white, urn-shaped, resembling blueberry flowers. Fruits are bright red, ¼-½" (6.3-12 mm) in diameter, and hard (like an apple). See also the similar-appearing but unrelated partridgeberry (Mitchella repens).

10/27/2017 · Bemis Road Conservation Area, Pepperell, MA
≈ 3½ × 2½" (9.7 × 6.8 cm)

10/3/2010 · Tarkill Interpretive Trail, Rte 402, Poconos, Peck’s Pond, PA
≈ 4½ × 4½" (11 × 12 cm)

Here is a comparison of these similar species:

	You are here Gaultheria procumbens	*Mitchella repens*
Common Name	Creeping Wintergreen	Partridgeberry
Plant	Low, spreading plant, typically 4-6" (10-15 cm) tall, sometimes as low as 1" (2.5 cm).	Low-lying *vine* is rarely more than 2" (5 cm) in height and up to 12" (30 cm) long.
Flowers	Flowers are about ¼" (6.3 mm) long, white, *urn-shaped*, resembling blueberry flowers.	*Tubular, with four sharp-tipped petals*, white or slightly pink, ½-¾" (1.3-1.9 cm) long and ⅜" (9.5 mm) in diameter. They appear from May to July.
Leaves	Oval, evergreen, dark in color, ¾-1¾" (2-5 cm) long and ⅜-¾" (1-2 cm) across. When broken, the leaves *smell of wintergreen*.	Opposite and oval or heart-shaped, about ½" (1.3 cm) long, with a *prominent light green central vein*. Each leaf is dark and shiny on top, pale and yellowish below.
Fruit	Fruits are bright red, *round*, ¼-½" (6.3-12 mm) in diameter, and hard (like an apple).	One red, *misshapen* berry ¼-½" (6.3-12 mm) in diameter—actually two fused berries—grows for each pair of flowers.
Range/ Zones
Type	Wild	Wild

Edibility: Berries are edible, but bland, tasting only faintly of wintergreen. To prepare a tea, sterilize a jar by boiling it, as you would for preparing jams and jellies. Pack it with wintergreen leaves, fill with sterile water, and store the sealed jar in a warm spot for several days. The water will become bubbly with fermentation, which releases the wintergreen flavor. Heat the fermented beverage and dilute it to taste. This tea is the derivation of the name “teaberry,” which also served as the name for Teaberry Gum.

Online References:

Gaultheria procumbens on www.carolinanature.com

Gaultheria procumbens in Paghat's Garden

Gaultheria procumbens on Wikipedia

Gaultheria procumbens on Plants for a Future, a resource and information centre for edible and otherwise useful plants

Gaultheria procumbens at the University of Wisconsin's Robert W. Freckmann Herbarium

Gaultheria procumbens on plants.ces.ncsu.edu

Gaultheria procumbens on the USDA Forest Service's Fire Effects Information Database

Gaultheria procumbens at the Virginia Tech Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation

4/24/2007 · Tom and Susan’s, Pepperell, MA
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

10/16/2016 · Guilder Pond, Mount Everett, Mt. Washington, MA
≈ 3 × 3" (7.6 × 7.9 cm)

6/7/2017 · Burns Loop Trail, Beaver Brook Conservation Area, Burns/Holland Farm, Milford, NH
≈ 8 × 5" (20 × 13 cm)

Gaultheria procumbens description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 12 Oct 2018.

9/18/2016 · Shore Acres Preserve

7/3/2012 · Pearl Hill State Park, Ashby, MA
≈ 4 × 6" (10 × 15 cm)

7/3/2012 · Pearl Hill State Park, Ashby, MA
≈ 5 × 3½" (13 × 9.2 cm)

10/27/2017 · Bemis Road Conservation Area, Pepperell, MA
≈ 4 × 4" (11 × 10 cm)

10/11/2011 · Pearl Hill State Park, Townsend, MA
≈ 8 × 5" (19 × 13 cm)

10/3/2010 · Tarkill Interpretive Trail, Rte 402, Poconos, Peck’s Pond, PA
≈ 7 × 7" (18 × 18 cm)

8/27/2010 · Beaver Brook Association Conservation Lands, Hollis, NH
≈ 9 × 6" (22 × 16 cm)

7/3/2012 · Pearl Hill State Park, Ashby, MA
≈ 7 × 4½" (17 × 11 cm)

Range:

About this map...