Taxon: Vaccinium macrocarpon Aiton

Summary

Genus:

Vaccinium

Section:

Oxycoccus

Family:

Ericaceae

Subfamily:

Vaccinioideae

Tribe:

Vaccinieae

Nomen number:

41030

Place of publication:

Hort. kew. 2:13, t. 7. 1789

Verified:

01/14/2010 ARS Systematic Botanists.

Accessions:

149 (147 active, 0 available) in National Plant Germplasm System. (Map it)

Other conspecific taxa

Autonyms (not in current use), synonyms and invalid designations

Homotypic Synonym(s)
Oxycoccus macrocarpos (Aiton) Pursh

No images

Conservation Status

Reference(s)

Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)
APHIS. Agricultural Risk Management System United States Department of Agriculture.
Brown, A. O. & J. N. McNeil. 2006. Fruit production in cranberry (Ericaceae: Vaccinium macrocarpon): a bet-hedging strategy to optimize reproductive effort. Amer. J. Bot. 93:910-916.
Deam, C. C. 1940. Flora of Indiana.
Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Facciola, S. 1990. Cornucopia, a source book of edible plants Kampong Publications.
Fajardo, D. et al. 2013. Complete plastid genome sequence of Vaccinium macrocarpon: structure, gene content, and rearrangements revealed by next generation sequencing. Tree Genet. Genomes 9:489-498.
FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 2010. Ecocrop (on-line resource).
Gleason, H. A. & A. Cronquist. 1963. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada.
Hackett, C. & J. Carolane. 1982. Edible Horticultural Crops Academic Press.
Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
Huxley, A., ed. 1992. The new Royal Horticultural Society dictionary of gardening
Kartesz, J. T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland.
Krüssmann, G. 1984. Manual of cultivated broad-leaved trees and shrubs (English translation of Handbuch der Laubgehölze. 1976)
Leung, A. Y. & S. Foster. 1996. Encyclopedia of common natural ingredients used in food, drugs, and cosmetics, ed. 2
Lyrene, P. M. et al. 2003. Polyploidy and sexual polyploidization in the genus Vaccinium. Euphytica 133:27-36. Note: Netherlands journal of plant breeding
Markle, G. M. et al., eds. 1998. Food and feed crops of the United States, ed. 2
McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Mohlenbrock, R. H. & D. M. Ladd. 1978. Distribution of Illinois vascular plants
Ohio Flora Committee (E. L. Braun, T. S. Cooperrider, T. R. Fisher, J. J. Furlow). 1967-. The vascular flora of Ohio.
Ownbey, G. B. & T. Morley. 1991. Vascular plants of Minnesota: a checklist and atlas
Personal Care Products Council. International Nomenclature Cosmetic Ingredient
Porcher, M. H. et al. Searchable World Wide Web Multilingual Multiscript Plant Name Database (MMPND) (on-line resource).
Radford, A. E. et al. 1964. Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas.
Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
Stewart, C. N., Jr. & E. T. Nilsen. 1995. Phenotypic plasticity and genetic variation of Vaccinium macrocarpon, the American cranberry I. Reaction norms of clones from central and marginal populations in a common garden. Int. J. Pl. Sci. 156:687-197.
Uttal, L. J. 1986. Updating the genus Vaccinium L. (Ericaceae) in West Virginia. Castanea 51:200.
Uttal, L. J. 1987. The genus Vaccinium L. (Ericaceae) in Virginia. Castanea 52:252.
Vander Kloet, S. P. 1983. The taxonomy of Vaccinium section Oxycoccus. Rhodora 85:25.
Vander Kloet, S. P. 1988. The genus Vaccinium in North America
Vander Kloet, S. P. 1996. Vaccinium. In: J. L. Luteyn et al., Ericaceae of the southeastern United States. Castanea 61:138.
Vorsa, N. & J. Johnson-Cicalese. 2012. Chapter 6. American cranberry. In: Badenes, M. L. & D. H. Byrne, eds., Handbook of plant breeding. Fruit breeding 191-223.
Walters, S. M. et al., eds. 1986-2000. European garden flora.
Wofford, B. E. Database of Tennessee vascular plants (on-line resource).
Zeldin, E. L. & B. H. McCown. 2002. Towards the development of a highly fertile polyploid cranberry. Acta Hort. 574:175-180. Note: this study examined the increase in ploidy level of Vaccinium macrocarpon (a natural occurring diploid species) for enhancing yields

Common names

Language	Name	seq	Citation
English	American cranberry	1	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
English	cranberry	1	Wiersema, J. H. & B. León. 1999. World economic plants: a standard reference CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
English	large cranberry	1	Vander Kloet, S. P. 1996. Vaccinium. In: J. L. Luteyn et al., Ericaceae of the southeastern United States. Castanea 61:138.
French	canneberge à gros fruits	2	FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
French	ronce d'Amérique	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	große Moosbeere	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
German	Kranbeere	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	arándano americano	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Spanish	arándano trepador	2	Rehm, S. 1994. Multilingual dictionary of agronomic plants
Swedish	amerikanskt tranbär	2	Aldén, B., S. Ryman, & M. Hjertson. 2012. Svensk Kulturväxtdatabas, SKUD (Swedish Cultivated and Utility Plants Database; online resource)

Distribution

order_code	Status	Continent	Subcontinent	Country	State	Note	Reference
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	New Brunswick		Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Newfoundland and Labrador	s.e. & s.-c.	Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Nova Scotia		Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Ontario		Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Prince Edward Island		Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	Canada	Québec		Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.
1	Native	Northern America	Eastern Canada	St. Pierre and Miquelon			FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	Illinois	n.e.	Mohlenbrock, R. H. & D. M. Ladd. 1978. Distribution of Illinois vascular plants
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	Minnesota		Ownbey, G. B. & T. Morley. 1991. Vascular plants of Minnesota: a checklist and atlas
1	Native	Northern America	North-Central U.S.A.	United States	Wisconsin		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Connecticut		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Indiana	n.	Deam, C. C. 1940. Flora of Indiana.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Maine		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Massachusetts		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Michigan		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New Hampshire		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New Jersey		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	New York		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Ohio		Ohio Flora Committee (E. L. Braun, T. S. Cooperrider, T. R. Fisher, J. J. Furlow). 1967-. The vascular flora of Ohio.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Pennsylvania		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Rhode Island		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	Vermont		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Northeastern U.S.A.	United States	West Virginia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Delaware		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	District of Columbia		Mohlenbrock, R. H. & D. M. Ladd. 1978. Distribution of Illinois vascular plants
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Maryland		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	North Carolina	n.e. & w.	Radford, A. E. et al. 1964. Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Tennessee		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
1	Native	Northern America	Southeastern U.S.A.	United States	Virginia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
2	Cultivated	Europe	Eastern Europe	Belarus			Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
2	Cultivated	Northern America		Canada			Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
2	Cultivated	Northern America		United States			Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Oregon		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Northwestern U.S.A.	United States	Washington		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
4	Naturalized	Northern America	Western Canada	Canada	British Columbia		FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.

Native
Northern America

EASTERN CANADA: Canada [New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador (s.e. & s.-c.), Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Québec], St. Pierre and Miquelon
NORTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Connecticut, Indiana (n.), Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia]
NORTH-CENTRAL U.S.A.: United States [Illinois (n.e.), Minnesota, Wisconsin]
SOUTHEASTERN U.S.A.: United States [Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina (n.e. & w.), Tennessee, Virginia]

Cultivated
Europe

EASTERN EUROPE: Belarus

Northern America

REGION: Canada, United States

Naturalized
Northern America

WESTERN CANADA: Canada [British Columbia]
NORTHWESTERN U.S.A.: United States [Oregon, Washington]

Reference(s)

Deam, C. C. 1940. Flora of Indiana.
FNA Editorial Committee. 1993-. Flora of North America.
Hanelt, P., ed. 2001. Mansfeld's encyclopedia of agricultural and horticultural crops. Volumes 1-6
Mohlenbrock, R. H. & D. M. Ladd. 1978. Distribution of Illinois vascular plants
Ohio Flora Committee (E. L. Braun, T. S. Cooperrider, T. R. Fisher, J. J. Furlow). 1967-. The vascular flora of Ohio.
Ownbey, G. B. & T. Morley. 1991. Vascular plants of Minnesota: a checklist and atlas
Radford, A. E. et al. 1964. Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas.
Scoggan, H. J. 1978-1979. The flora of Canada, 4 vol. Note: = Oxycoccus macrocarpus (Aiton) Pers.

Economic Uses

Usage	Type	Reference
Human food	beverage base	Leung, A. Y. & S. Foster. 1996. Encyclopedia of common natural ingredients used in food, drugs, and cosmetics, ed. 2
Human food	fruit	Leung, A. Y. & S. Foster. 1996. Encyclopedia of common natural ingredients used in food, drugs, and cosmetics, ed. 2
Medicines	folklore	Duke, J. A. et al. 2002. CRC Handbook of medicinal herbs
Medicines	folklore	McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker. 2000. Herbs of commerce, ed. 2 American Herbal Products Association, Silver Spring, Maryland.

Cite as: USDA, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System. 2026. Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN Taxonomy). National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland.
URL: https://npgstest.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=41030. Accessed 15 April 2026.