How to Grow and Care for Bearberry in Your Garden

Bearberry, also known by its scientific name Arctostaphylos uva-ursi, is a woody plant with dark green leaves, urn-shaped pink flowers, and bright red berries in the botanical family Ericaceae. It is also known by the common names kinnikinnick, bear’s grape, mountain cranberry, mealberry, sandberry, or the common bearberry. Bears and some small mammals often seek them out to eat, which is where the name “bearberry” came from.

This woody-stemmed plant is a popular evergreen shrub that is used as a perennial groundcover because it grows in clumps that are low to the ground. The plant is native to the northern regions of Asia and Europe and in many regions of North America, including Alaska to Canada and down to New Mexico.

Plant bearberry in the early-to-late spring, after the threat of the last frost of spring has passed. Bearberry thrives in full sun but can also tolerate partial shade. It grows best in USDA hardiness zones 2 to 6.

Once your bearberry plant is established, it will grow quickly and spread throughout your garden to form a lush groundcover. Here is a quick overview of how to

1. 1. Choose a location. Find a location that will receive full sun or partial shade and in a wide area where it will have space to spread out. Many landscapers will plant bearberry plants on hillsides, in rock gardens, or along rock walls.
2. 2. Prepare the soil. Bearberry will thrive in even the poorest soil types with very few nutrients, including sandy or rocky soil. It will grow best in high-acid soil or a soil pH that is roughly 4.5 to 5.
3. 3. Plant your bearberry. You can find bearberry plants at most garden centers which you can plant directly into your garden, or you can start from seeds that have been stratified, or chilled and sanded down with a file. You can also propagate bearberry plants by cutting off a stem, dipping the cut end in a rooting hormone powder, and then planting your stem cutting in the soil. Water your bearberry immediately after you plant it. It should be established within a year.

Bearberry plants are a great ground cover plant for landscaping and can grow well even in poor soil. The red bearberry berries can bring a nice splash of color to your garden and the pink flowers have a bloom time between March and June and can attract hummingbirds and butterflies.

1. 1. Water weekly. Bearberry plants require roughly one inch of water every week. If you are receiving plenty of rain they won’t require any watering, and during the summer months when it is dry and hot you may water them slightly more frequently.
2. 2. Fertilize once a year. Bearberry can survive in a variety of soil conditions, but since the plant does not fix its own nitrogen, it is helpful to apply fertilizer to it once a year. Apply a 10-10-10 fertilizer to the soil around your bearberry in the spring, and watch it grow prodigiously during the following growing season.
3. 3. Winterize your plant. This plant is vulnerable to winter burn during the colder months. To prevent this, winterize your plants before the first frost of fall or winter with a layer of mulch over its roots to stabilize the soil temperature.

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