Viburnum opulus

Cranberrybush, Cranberrybush

Family: Viburnaceae · Type: shrub · Not Native

Cranberrybush is a naturalized shrub found in the high Cascade Range in spring-fed montane riparian and meadow habitats at elevations of 300 to 900 meters. Flowering from May to July, this plant produces clusters of distinctive flowers with large white marginal sterile flowers up to 35 millimeters in diameter surrounding smaller fertile flowers. Growing with branches that reach a moderate height, the shrub has widely elliptic leaves divided into three distinct lobes with serrated edges. Its leaves feature petioles with large glands and blades 4 to 12 centimeters long, creating an intricate foliage pattern. The fruit develops as an ovoid structure 6 to 12 millimeters long, transitioning from yellow to orange-red as it matures.

Habitat: Spring-fed montane riparian/montane meadow habitats

Bloom period: May-Jul

Elevation: 300-900 m

Bioregions: CaRH

California counties: Trinity, El Dorado, Nevada, Alameda, Santa Clara

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.