Mountain snow berry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mountain snow berry |
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Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Ericales |
| Family: | Ericaceae |
| Genus: | Gaultheria |
| Species: |
G. depressa
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| Binomial name | |
| Gaultheria depressa |
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The Gaultheria depressa, often called the mountain snow berry or alpine wax berry, is a small plant that grows close to the ground. It's a type of shrub from the heath family, called Ericaceae. You can find it growing naturally in rocky, high-up areas of Tasmania, Australia, and New Zealand.
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Discovering the Mountain Snow Berry
Scientists use a system called taxonomy to name and group living things. This helps us understand how different plants and animals are related.
Who Named This Plant?
The famous scientist Joseph Dalton Hooker first described the Gaultheria depressa in 1847. He studied a plant sample collected by Ronald Campbell Gunn from a place called Ben Lomond in Tasmania.
What Does Its Name Mean?
The second part of its scientific name, depressa, comes from Latin. It means "flat" or "pressed down," which perfectly describes how this shrub grows low to the ground.
Family Connections
Scientists have studied the DNA of the mountain snow berry. They found that its closest relative is another plant from New Zealand called Gaultheria antipoda. This suggests that the mountain snow berry might have traveled from New Zealand to Australia a long, long time ago! Another close relative is the New Zealand species Gaultheria oppositifolia.
What Does It Look Like?
The mountain snow berry is a small, spreading prostrate shrub. This means it grows flat along the ground.
Size and Leaves
In Australia, it usually grows about 10 to 20 centimeters (4 to 8 inches) high. It can spread out quite wide, from 50 to 150 centimeters (20 to 60 inches) across. In New Zealand, it can grow even larger! Its small leaves are shaped like ovals or circles and are about 0.5 to 1 centimeter (0.2 to 0.4 inches) long. They have tiny jagged edges, like a saw.
Flowers and Fruit
From September to January, you can see small, white, tube-shaped flowers on the plant. After the flowers, the plant grows round fruits that are about 1 centimeter (0.4 inches) wide. These fruits can be white or red.
How Seeds Spread
In New Zealand, the way the plant grows low to the ground and its fruit hangs down suggests that lizards might help spread its seeds. Lizards can easily reach and eat the fruit, then carry the seeds to new places. Also, a type of insect called a ground weta (Zealandosandrus maculifrons) has been seen eating these fruits.
Growing in Gardens
The mountain snow berry is a great plant for rock gardens, especially in places with mild weather. You can sometimes buy it from plant nurseries. It likes soil that drains well and is a bit acidic, and it prefers to grow in partial shade. The good news is, its berries are safe to eat!
Uses of the Mountain Snow Berry
Long ago, early settlers in the southern part of New Zealand in a region called Otago found a tasty use for the mountain snow berry. They used to gather the fruits of Gaultheria depressa and bake them into delicious snowberry pies!
Different Types of Mountain Snow Berry
Just like there can be different types of apples (like Fuji or Granny Smith), there are also different types, or "varieties," within a plant species. The mountain snow berry has two main varieties:
- Gaultheria depressa var. depressa: This variety grows in both Tasmania and New Zealand.
- Gaultheria depressa var. novae-zealandiae: This variety is special because it's only found in New Zealand.
Images for kids
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The leaves of Gaultheria depressa.
