There are 3 types of cranberries:
1.Vaccinium macrocarpon, the large cranberry, is the commercially grown variety we find at the supermarket or in cranberry products.
2.Vaccinium oxycoccus, the small cranberry, is also called the mossberry and is found growing in the wild.
3. Vaccinium vitis-idaea,the lingonberry or mountain cranberry, grows well in very cold climates and is currently being developed as a crop in Poland and the Soviet Union.

Interesting Facts
Cranberries are native to America and were a staple to American Indians long before the Pilgrims arrived. The Indians used cranberries as food, for medicinal purposes, and to dye textiles. They believed the cranberry possessed special powers to calm the nerves. Commercial production began in the early 1800's. The cranberries were sold by the barrel, and each barrel weighed 100 pounds. Cranberries are still sold by the 100 pound lot.

The cranberry (once called the crane berry) earned its name from the fact that its bloom resembles the head of a crane.

The cranberry is self pollinating, but the use of bees increases yields. It takes 9 million bees to pollinate 100 acres of cranberries during the bloom season.

The 2004 projected crop of cranberries in the US is 6.58 million barrels, and growers will be paid around $40 per barrel.

Cranberry Harvest
Cranberries which are used for processing are wet harvested. The beds are flooded with eight to ten inches of water, then a machine with a beater on the front is driven through the bed to remove the berries from the vines. The berries then float to the water's surface and are corralled into a corner and conveyed out of the bed to a waiting truck.