https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/183232793 Blackberries
The crowberry, Empetrum nigrum, is known in Western Alaska as the blackberry. It a very prominent evergreen shrub in Alaska but can also be found in Canada, some of the norther New England and Great Lakes states and the Pacific Coast of Northern California. It is a low-lying shrub that isn’t any more than 6 inches in height and grows in thick patches that can occur on in both forests and open tundra. Blackberries have a wide variety of uses, both nutritional and medicinal. For many mammals, such as species of birds, caribou and rodents, blackberries are an important staple in their diet. They are rich in nutrients and antioxidants. Humans use them in jams, jellies, and pies, usually mixed with blueberries and/or cranberries. They are used medicinally for main internal problems such as digestion (diarrhea) or kidney health.
The crowberries aka blackberries that are pictured in my observation are located on the top of Anvil Mountain, on the outskirts of Nome, AK. I hiked up the mountain on a slightly windy and overcast day. This was my first-time hiking up the rather steep face of the mountain, it was exhausting and exhilarating at the same time. Sitting on the top of the mountain, looking over the land and sea I grew up on was very peaceful. Before making this observation and reading about blackberries, I didn’t know much about them. I do know they are one of the most abundant berries in our area and that people bake with them. I knew they were harvested in the fall time, after the first frost, just like cranberries. I’ve never had a taste for them, but my son does. I’ve mentioned in one of my other posts that one legend in this area is that when a member of the tribe passes away, their name goes to the next born and they take on his likeness. My ex-father-in-law passed away a couple of months before my son was born, so my son is his Eskimo namesake. The elder really loved blackberries, my son is obsessed with them.
Empetrum Nigrum, www.fs.usda.gov/database/feis/plants/shrub/empnig/all.html. Accessed 14 Sept. 2023.
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Hello, Amy! Thank you for sharing your gathered information and personal connection with the crowberry. I did not know it was also known as a blackberry in the more Western parts of the state nor did I know it had digestive and general health benefits outside of being a sweet treat that is native to Alaska and other places. It is great you found these berries to observe when you went on a hike to Anvil Mountain in Nome–I, personally, have never been there but I’d love to check out the beautiful tundra and unique Alaska Native cultures around the area. Also, it was touching to read about how your son enjoys the crowberries just as much as an elder you were connected with did and therefore inherited his name.
Hi Amy! First of all, when I read Crowberry, I had no idea they also go by the name Blackberry. I thought the two were completely different berries. I'm not sure if we have these in Juneau, but I have picked crowberries in the Anchorage area before. It is good to know they are common in Nome. I find it very interesting that animals are so dependent on berries! It makes it sweeter that berries are often very abundant and have a long lifespan during the summer. I enjoy utilizing different berries for their antioxidants and try to add them to my diet, and I would love to see if Juneau has any I can harvest too. I appreciate the personal touch you added to your post. Blessings, thank you for sharing!
Wow Amy;
I have never eaten or seen crowberries. I have seen pictures and have always wondered how they tasted. It sounds like they have acquired tastes like stink currant or berries in that category. So far, of all the berries I have tasted, there isn't one I haven't minded. I love the story about your son and his remarkable heritage. I named my firstborn daughter after my grandmother, but not for the beautiful reasons you have shared here. I love these stories.
It sounds like these berries are evolutionary in their ability to be used for a myriad of medicinal properties. I find it interesting how different herbs and plants in their indigenous areas are so important for the people groups that live there. For example, here in the South East, no cows or animals produce milk to produce calcium, but the tribes here boil their salmon, especially the head, creating calcium-rich food. I think the crowberry sounds like it provides in so many ways for the people that live up North. I have never been there, but I would love to visit someday.
Thanks again for your observation-
Gayleen
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