Wild Berry Identification Name Color Shape Description of Plant Where It Grows Unique Characteristics What You Should Know White or Egg-shaped Large, compound Found throughout Both red and white Both white and red baneberries bright red and smooth leaves; tightly the United States, species are are extremely poisonous. clustered white or primarily in distinguished by a black red flowers; white shady, wooded dot at one end, giving berries form in areas them the nickname, clusters on thick, red "doll's eyes." stalks while red berries form on thin, green stalks
Baneberry (Red or White) Almost Round and Shrub with bell- Found throughout Belladonna berries are All parts of this plant is black in smooth, shaped reddish- the United States very shiny and are extremely poisonous. appearance similar in purple flowers and larger and darker than shape and egg-shaped, dark blueberries. appearance green leaves and to a thick stems blueberry
Belladonna Black Each berry Thorny shrub or Found throughout Unlike raspberries, Unripe red blackberries are looks like a bush with thick North America, blackberries are not often mistaken for raspberries, cluster of canes; flowers are especially in the hollow inside. but they taste bitter and tart. tiny, round white; leaves are Pacific Northwest berries. toothy with three leaflets
Blackberry Dark red or Round, about Thorny bush; leaves Found mainly in When rubbed between Berries are generally sour, but yellow- the size of a and branches are the Rocky the hands or crushed, those harvested after the first orange currant silvery white; flowers Mountains and berries form a soapy, frost are slightly sweeter. are yellow and bell- Great Plains frothy foam. shaped. along streams, rivers, and wooded areas
Buffalo Berry Dark red- Oblong, Thornless tree or Found throughout Each fruit contains one Pits and leaves are poisonous purple about the shrub; leaves are the United States, large pit. and contain a small amount of size of a pea dull, green, and especially in the cyanide, which can be serrated; flowers are Appalachian destroyed through cooking or tiny white cylindrical Mountains and drying. clusters along riverbanks in dense thickets
Chokecherry Red Round, looks Trailing vines with Found in bogs, Cranberry stems are Berries are sweetest after the very similar small pinkish-yellow, marshes, or very thin and wiry. first frost. to a currant bell-shaped flowers; along streams, Cranberries are usually tiny, evergreen especially in found in moist soil. leaves Massachusetts, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Washington, and Oregon
Cranberry Dark Clusters of Thornless shrub or Forests and Elderberries grow in flat Avoid green berries as they purple- tiny, round, small tree with tiny, woodlands clusters and are may make you sick. black seed-like white, clustered throughout the thornless. berries flowers (flowers United States resemble a tiny honeysuckle); leaves are flat
Elderberry Dark blue Small, round Shrub grows in Found primarily in Each huckleberry Huckleberries are often or purple- berries, dense thickets the Pacific contains ten, hard mistaken as blueberries but black resembling a approximately four- Northwestern and seeds. can be distinguished by their blueberry feet tall; flowers are Northeastern hard seeds and blue-black bell-shaped; leaves regions, color. turn bronze or especially on reddish purple in the mountain slopes fall
Huckleberry Blue Round, A Juniper can be a Found throughout Juniper bark is thin with Berries are edible but bitter and resembles a tall tree or smaller the United States a distinctive scent may cause severe stomach blueberry shrub; leaves are (similar to cedar) and upset in some people. needle-like, very comes off in strips. sharp and evergreen
Juniper Berry Red to Each Very tall tree growing Found throughout Mulberries look similar Unripe berries or sap may be black mulberry is up to 60 feet; the United States to raspberries or toxic or hallucinogenic. Berries oval and serrated leaves are blackberries but are do not keep well and should be made up of usually oval with more oval and not used quickly. many tiny three lobes; flowers round. berries are small, fuzzy, white clusters
Mulberry Bright red Each berry is Bramble (shrub) with Found throughout All raspberries are Raspberry leaves are also a cluster of thorned canes; the United States hollow. When a edible and often used in herbal tiny, round flowers have white raspberry is picked, it teas. berries petals with yellow leaves behind its center; leaves have receptacle. three to five leaflets
Red Raspberry Red Hollow Dense shrub that Found throughout Leaves closely Fruit is tart and contains many berries grows in clumps; the United States, resemble those of a seeds. resemble fuzzy leaves contain especially around maple tree. Fruit is raspberries, five lobes; flowers railroad tracks, hollow, resembling a but are flatter are white and star- forest edges, and thimble. and smaller shaped. along roadsides
Thimbleberry Blue Round, Climbing vine; leaves Found throughout Virginia creeper is often Berries are extremely toxic to resembling a have five leaflets the United States, confused with poison ivy humans. blueberry with many teeth; especially in the and often found growing flowers are tiny eastern regions alongside poison ivy. green clusters.
Virginia Creeper Blue-black Round with a Shrub with thin Found throughout Wild blueberries are Wild blueberries are often 5-pointed branches; flowers the United States, smaller than confused with huckleberries but "crown" on are white or light especially in conventionally grown are much lighter in color and one end pink; leaves are Maine and New blueberries; the berries seeds are soft. broad and often Jersey contain many small, soft evergreen. seeds.
Wild Blueberry Unripe Oblong Low-growing, Found throughout Berries look almost Be cautious when harvesting berries are shape creeping plant; the United States identical to wild strawberries, because white to covered in leaves are hairy with commercially-grown small critters like toads and light green; seeds three leaflets; white strawberries but are spiders often take up residence ripe berries flowers have five much smaller. under the plant's leaves. are deep petals red.
Wild Strawberry Red Small, Low-growing, Found throughout Leaves have a Wintergreen leaves contains roundish creeping plant; the United States, distinctive wintergreen methyl salicylate, a form of berries are leaves are glossy especially in scent when crushed. aspirin, so people allergic to star-shaped and evergreen; forests; is often aspirin should avoid this plant. on the flowers are white and planted in yards bottom trumpet shaped
Wintergreen Berry Bright red Small, round Small to medium- Found throughout Berries are soft and Leaves and berries are berries that sized tree; dark, the United States, squishy in texture and poisonous. are open on evergreen foliage is in forests; have a hard, greenish- the end flat and needle-like. commonly blue stone in the center. planted in yards
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Image Sources
Baneberry image Sheri Hagwood @ USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database USDA, NRCS. 2013. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 28 February 2013). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
Belladonna image Black Nightshade 1 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldmandancing/5231310634/) / OldManDancing (http://www.flickr.com/photos/oldmandancing/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Blackberries image Blackberries (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12567713@N00/2750878295/) / born1945 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12567713@N00/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Buffalo berries image USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Herman, D.E., et al. 1996. North Dakota tree handbook. USDA NRCS ND State Soil Conservation Committee; NDSU Extension and Western Area Power Administration, Bismarck. USDA, NRCS. 2013. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 28 February 2013). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.
Chokecherry image Chokecherries (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/6176048533/) / Leonora Enking (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Cranberry image arándano rojo americano (http://www.flickr.com/photos/martius/8380303592/) / Manuel Martín Vicente (http://www.flickr.com/photos/martius/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/) Huckleberry image Huckleberries! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/laurelfan/3942902645/) / Laurel F (http://www.flickr.com/photos/laurelfan/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Juniper berries image Juniper berries (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ragesoss/1794601045/) / Sage Ross (http://www.flickr.com/photos/ragesoss/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Mulberry image Mulberry-10 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/akeg/2644227409/) / Eric Schmuttenmaer (http://www.flickr.com/photos/akeg/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Raspberry image Raspberries (http://www.flickr.com/photos/quinnanya/3743405902/) / Quinn Dombrowski (http://www.flickr.com/photos/quinnanya/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Thimbleberry image Thimbleberries (aka Rubus parviflorus) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/iversonic/875014378/in/photostream/) / Mark Iverson (http://www.flickr.com/photos/iversonic/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Virginia Creeper image Parthenocissus quinquefolia (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/4965048107/) / Leonora Enking (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Wild blueberry image Signal Hill Hike (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjerrettenns/7767286166/) / The Tedster (http://www.flickr.com/photos/tjerrettenns/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Wild strawberry image Woodland Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) (http://www.flickr.com/photos/livenature/6247538566/) / Franco Folini (http://www.flickr.com/photos/livenature/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Wintergreen berry image Wintergreen with Berry (http://www.flickr.com/photos/allie_k/8045608582/) / Allie Kade (http://www.flickr.com/photos/allie_k/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)
Yew berry image Taxus baccata 'Standishii' (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/3380872616/) / Leonora Enking (http://www.flickr.com/photos/33037982@N04/) / CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/)