Cranberries: planting, caring for, harvesting & more - Plantura

Cranberries are not only trendy because of their healthy fruit. They are also an eye-catcher as ground cover. We show how best to plant them.

While it has been grown commercially in the US and Canada for some time, the cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon) has only recently gained greater prominence in Europe. No wonder - after all, it tastes like local cranberries (Vaccinium vitis-idaea) very similar. The cultivation conditions are also similar, after all the cranberry belongs to the same plant genus as the cultivated blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum) and the lingonberry. We will tell you how you can imitate the conditions prevailing in the forest in your garden and plant cranberries yourself.

Cranberries: origin and description

The cranberries, which come from north-eastern North America, owe their name to the name of a crane. crane) reminiscent flower shape. Cranberries form tendrils and only grow to about 25 cm in height. For this reason, they are often used as ground cover. As such, they make a lot with their beautiful flowers and red, very healthy berries. Cranberries form a dense root system shallow underground. The leaves of the cranberry plant are evergreen, somewhat leathery and waxy to the touch, and only regrow every few years. In autumn, leaf and flower buds develop on the side shoots for the following year.

Cranberry Varieties: An Overview

There are numerous cranberry varieties to choose from in specialist garden shops and online nurseries. We have had good experiences with the following three varieties and are therefore happy to recommend them:

‚EarlyBlack‘: Early-ripening variety with dark red to slightly blackish berries; very aromatic, medium-sized fruits; very frost hardy

‚Stevens‘: Fast-growing and very productive variety; recommended for drier soils and harsher climates

‚Bergman‘: High-yielding variety with medium-sized, dark red fruits; grows flat and forms a lot of foliage - therefore ideal as ground cover

Planting cranberries: site conditions

Like their belonging to the heather family (Ericaceae) suggests, cranberries have a preference for natural heathland. Sandy and peat soils are among the original habitats of the cranberry, although it does not tolerate waterlogging or drought for long periods of time.

Cranberries like sunny to slightly shaded locations with a soil pH of 5. Normally only forest soils have such a low pH value. But there are a few tricks you can use to acidify the garden soil a bit, that is, to lower the pH from a typical 6-7 to 5. In very calcareous soil with a pH value of 8 or higher, however, these tricks do not work in the long term. After a while, the soil levels out the acidification and is then no longer suitable for cranberries under these conditions. In garden soils with a pH of 7.5 or higher, it may therefore be more effective to plant cranberries in planters or pots with acidic rhododendron soil.

tip: To create good site conditions for your cranberry, you can use a high-quality organic soil such as our Plantura Organic universal soil mix with sand and bark humus, spruce needles, grape pomace or similar material.

How do you find out the pH of your soil?

• You can buy so-called pH meters including a certain substance in gardening shops. This substance is mixed with a little soil and causes a chemical reaction. You can then use a color chart to read the pH value of the tested soil.
• Alternatively, you can buy small amounts of 10% hydrochloric acid in pharmacies. If this is dripped onto a piece of soil with a pipette, a chemical reaction also occurs. The higher the lime content of the soil, i.e. also the pH value, the more it bubbles. If a lot of bubbles form, the soil is not suitable for cranberries. If none form at all, it is very well suited. Slight foaming reveals that planting cranberries is possible with appropriate soil preparation.

In order to obtain a meaningful result and to rule out application errors, we recommend that you carry out both tests in two to three places on the area planned for the cranberries.

The relatively hardy cranberries are usually not at risk of frost. The plants are only sensitive to early frosts in autumn or late frosts during budding and are therefore happy to have warm protection from fleece, rips or similar materials.

Planting cranberries: instructions

Cranberries are planted in spring from March to May or in autumn from September to mid-October. Before planting, however, the soil must first be prepared. The soil of the entire area to be planted is dug about 15 to 20 cm deep. This soil can then be used for other beds such as raised beds. It must be replaced for the reason that it is not acidic enough. This 15 to 20 cm deep layer of soil is now covered with a mixture of sand and rotted bark mulch or bark humus, rotted compost, needle litter and acidic rhododendron soil filled up. Sand is mixed in at a proportion of around 10 percent. Now it's time to plant. A planting distance of 20 to 30 cm has proven effective for rapid ground cover that suppresses weeds. Cranberries form many runners and spread well. This is another reason why they are well suited as ground covers.

After planting, you should water the young cranberry plants abundantly. Then cover the ground with bark mulch. The soil is also acidified by the decomposition of the bark mulch. However, you should not use bark mulch too excessively, since the bacteria that break down the bark mulch fix nitrogen. In the worst case, this can lead to a no longer optimal nitrogen supply in the cranberry.

Harvesting and storing cranberries

The cherry-red berries, which are about 1 to 2.5 cm in size, are harvested from the beginning of September to the end of October. If you don't harvest the cranberries, they will grace the plant well into spring. But that would actually be a shame, after all, cranberries contain a relatively large amount of iodine and many vitamins. The berries are fresh and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two months, but are not suitable for consumption in large quantities. Thanks to their natural preservatives (e.g. benzoic acid), cranberries can be processed very well without sugar to make juices, compotes, jams or the like.