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Grouseberry
Vaccinium scoparium Leib. ex Coville
Other names: Whortleberry
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Family: Ericaceae,
Heath
Genus: Vaccinium
Description
General: dwarf shrub, not evergreen, usually more or less
matted, 10-25 cm tall, the branches many, slender, erect,
broomlike, strongly angled, greenish or yellowish-green,
hairless or occasionally sparsely finely short-hairy.
 Leaves: alternate, lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, 8-15
mm long, thin, finely sharp-toothed, sharp-pointed, light-
green, hairless or very minutely short-hairy, conspicuously
veiny on the lower surfaces.
 Flowers: about 4 mm long, nodding, single from leaf
axils, on stalks 2-2.5 mm long. Corolla pinkish, bell- to
urn-shaped. Calyx very shallowly lobed. Filaments hairless,
the anthers with 2 slender, stiff, bristles, the pore-bearing
terminal tubes about equal to the pollen sacs.
Flowering time: May-August.
 Fruits: berries, round, bright red, sometimes purplish,
3-5 mm broad, sweetish.
Distribution
Open to wooded sites, foothills to subalpine zone, in w.
and c. parts of MT. Also from B.C. and Alberta to n. CA,
through ID and SD, s. in the Rocky Mts. to CO.
  Edible and medicinal plant: see below.
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(click on image for full size)
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(click on images for full size)
Edible Uses:
Grouseberry was used for food by the Klamath, Okanagan-Colville, Thompson, and Yurok Indians. The fruits
of grouseberry are edible, raw or cooked and can be used in pies, jellies, jams, breads, muffins etc.
They are palatable and juicy. The dried fruits can be used to flavor other foods or to thicken soups.
The fresh or dried leaves can be used to make a tea.
Medicinal Uses:
The plant has agents that are antiseptic, act as appetizer, prevent or alleviate nausea and vomiting, cause tissue to contract, relieve and remove gas from the digestive system, and cause a deficiency of blood sugar. A tea of the dried, pulverized leaves has been used in the treatment of nausea and to increase the appetite by the Cheyenne Indians. They also gave dried and powdered fruits to children to improve their appetite.
Other Uses:
The branches were used as brooms by the Yurok Indians.
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