Arctostaphylos uva-ursi ‘Michigan’ (bearberry)

(Ericaceae – heath family)

About 50 species of evergreen shrubs that range in size from ground covers to small trees, mostly native to western North America.

This low-growing evergreen ground cover spreads slowly to form a dense, broad mat. The small, oval leaves are glossy, vibrant bright green to dark green in summer, changing to bronze or reddish in the fall. The combination of texture and color in the leaves creates a unique ground cover effect of an emerald carpet. Small whitish-pink urn-shaped flower spikes bloom from late April to May, followed by bright red berries in late June and August. Bearberry requires well-drained soil, but it is otherwise quite adaptable in its soil requirements. Soil pH is apparently not critical, and its habit of growing near sea beaches indicates that it is also quite tolerant of salty soil. Prospers on infertile, sandy, gravelly, or rocky soil, and should not be fertilized. Michael Dirr in his Manual of Woody Landscape Plants notes that bearberry has been called “the prettiest, sturdiest, and most reliable ground cover”. Bearberry also has a history of medicinal use.