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 Squashberry
(Viburnum edule). Similar to the highbush cranberry
or mooseberry in other parts of North America, this berry
is part of the Caprifoliaceae (Honeysuckle family). Squashberries
thrive in low to middle elevations in Newfoundland's moist
forests, rocky slopes, and along margins of wetlands. It
is a decidous shrub which reaches heights ranging from 2
to 12 feet. The plant has smooth gray bark and
shallowly lobed, sharply toothed leaves. Once sexually mature
(around five years of age) their milky-white flowers are
borne from May to August and the fruit ripen from August
to October and persist through winter. Cool autumn days
turn the leaves a striking red to a pink hue preceeding
their fall. The autumn frosts turn the reddish berries a
glistening red. The tart, clustered berries are often picked
in late summer and early fall as well as after the first
frost. Squashberry bark was often chewed and juice swallowed
to cure such ailments as lung colds. The Haida Indians considered
these berries food for supernatural beings.
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