SECRETARY'S REPORT. 43 



macrocarpus). This plant was formerly classed as one of 

 the whortleberry genus, ( Vaccinim,) but is now considered 

 by many scientific men, as forming a group of four or five 

 species, of which, the two mentioned above, are most commonly 

 known.* 



The roots of the small cranberry are creeping, with many 

 stems, which are very slender, wiry and trailing, with many 

 leafy branches. Its leaves are alternate, small, perennial, 

 somewhat oval, rolled back at the edges, erect on small stalks. 

 They are glaucous, or of a grayish color underneath. The 

 flowers are small, drooping, and very beautiful j each consist- 

 ing of four distinct petals rolled back at the base, of a deep 

 flesh color, on simple red stalks, which have two or more very 

 small, imperfectly developed leaves or bracts. The berries 

 of this species are small, being about as, large as an ordinary 

 sized pea. In the early part of their growth, they are spotted, 

 very much like a sparrow's egg, the spots being a little smaller, 

 but, finally, in favorable situations, turn to a deep red. They 

 have an acid taste, and are much used for tarts and jellies. 

 It delights in marshy bogs covered with moss. It grows in 

 great abundance in Russia, Sweden, Germany, and to some extent 

 in Scotland and the north of England. It is also found in Nova 



* There is a plant called the Highbush, or High Cranberry, ( Viburnum opulus,) 

 indigenous to North America, found on uplands in Maine, and along the St. John's 

 River, and in some parts of Massachusetts. It is a beautiful shrub, sometimes ten 

 or twelve feet high, having a vs^hite blossom, and a fruit somewhat smaller than 

 the common cranberry, perfectly red, and of an acid taste, well adapted for tarts, 

 pies, &c., for which it is often used. The fruit differs from the common cranberry, 

 in having a small oblong stone instead of seeds. It is easily propagated by seeds, 

 layers, or cuttings, and is often found as a garden shrub, flourishing in every 

 variety of soil, sands and clays, wet and dry. Its berries grow in clusters and are 

 persistent through the winter. 



The plant, called in Maine, the "Mountain Cranberry," (Vaccinium Vitis Idoca,) 

 has leaves shaped like those of our common cranberry, and bears an acid fruit used 

 for the same purposes as our cranberry. It is very rare in this State, and where 

 known, is called the " Cow Berry." 



There is still another plant, (Arbutus, Uva-ursi — L. j found in abundance on Cape 

 Cod, and there called the " Hog' Cranberry." This is the Common Bear berry. It 

 is not properly a variety of the cranberry, but belongs to a different genus. Its 

 leaves, are in shape, much like those of the cranberry, and it is trailing like that 

 plant. Its fruit is red, but smaller than the cranberry, and is used for medicinal 

 purposes. 



All these plants have come under my personal observation and study. 



