Berries of the Hills 



The cranberry — for it is always thus that the cowberry is 

 named in Scotland — is a plant of the lower hills and pine 

 forests rather than the high tops. In height it is consider- 

 ably less than the blaeberry, and retains its sturdy leaves 

 throughout winter. Its flowers are borne in a cluster at the 

 apex of the stem. They are usually white, but may some- 

 times be found of varying shades of pink. Almost alone 

 amongst hill plants the cranberry may be found flowering 

 during every month of the summer, and even in late autumn, 

 when there is little or no chance of the berries coming to 

 maturity. The fruit of the cranberry is of a dark red, and 

 one flower stem often bears quite a number of the berries, 

 but the stem is sturdy, and is quite able to carry the weight of 

 the fruit. 



The leaves of both blaeberry and cranberry frequently turn 

 to a flaming red at the approach of autumn. I noticed in 

 Rothiemurchus during a recent summer that shortly after 

 producing their leaves the blaeberry plants were almost every- 

 where attacked by a species of caterpillar and their leaves 

 rolled up into unsightly withered balls. The disastrous fire 

 which swept Rothiemurchus Forest in June, 1920, was largely 

 aided by this fact, for the thick undergrowth of blaeberry 

 plants, instead of offering a moist barrier to the flames, was 

 almost as dry and inflammable as the heather itself. 



A plant closely akin to the cranberry in its fruit is the 

 bearberry {Arctostaphylos uva-ursi). Its berries are some- 

 what smaller than those of the former plant, and in colour 

 of a slightly lighter red. The habit and appearance of the 

 two plants are, however, entirely different, for the cranberry 

 grows erect and sturdy, while the bearberry creeps prostrate 

 over the hills. Although the two species may be found grow- 

 ing together, the bearberry is the more Alpine, and is usually 

 met with on the high ground — ^at 3,000 feet and over. It is 

 probably owing to this fact that its habit is prostrate, for it is 

 thus better able to withstand the gales which so frequently 

 sweep the high hills. The bearberry fruits late, and its berries 



