VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Cornus canadensis | Bunchberry 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
In Alaska, bunchberry is one of the two most important forage plants for
mule deer and black-tailed deer [42] and is used throughout the growing
season [96].  Moose also use bunchberry during the growing season
[10,91].  Bunchberry (C. canadensis and C. suecica) made up 15 percent
of the summer diet of a tame moose on a Newfoundland island [10].
Spruce and sharp-tailed grouse use the fruit and buds, and the Ipswich
sparrow, veery thrush, Philadelphia vireo, and warbling vireo eat the
fruit [57].  Alaskan populations of northern red-backed voles rely
heavily on the fruit production of bunchberry and other shrubs in all
seasons, but especially in winter [98].  Mice may also use the fruit and
disperse the seeds [89].


PALATABILITY : 
In palatability trials with captive black-tailed deer in southeastern
Alaska, deer preferred leaves from bunchberry plants growing in a forest
over leaves from plants growing in a clearcut [42].  The degree of use
shown by livestock and wildlife species for blue elderberry in Wyoming
is rated as follows [15]:

                         WY   
Pronghorn               poor  
Elk                     good  
Mule deer               good  
White-tailed deer       good  
Small mammals           good  
Small nongame birds     good  
Upland game birds       good  
Waterfowl               fair  


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
The nutrient content of bunchberry leaves varies seasonally,
geographically, and by site.  In southeastern Alaska, bunchberry leaves
had higher values for nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, copper, zinc, and
iron in May than in July and October.  Laboratory analysis showed that
May samples were more digestible than the later samples.  Values for
calcium, magnesium, and sodium varied seasonally in the opposite
direction [95].

Leaves of bunchberry plants collected in a forest had 1.9 to 2.5 times
more digestible protein than those collected in an adjacent clearcut,
with an average crude protein content 27 percent higher for forest
leaves than for clearcut leaves [78].  Plants growing in the understory
allocate carbon primarily for growth and maintenance; those in the open
had higher concentrations of carbohydrates, tannins, and other phenolics
[42].  Mean values from this southeastern Alaska study of bunchberry
plants from three clearcuts and two forest sites are summarized below
[42,95].

                             Stand Age (years)
                        5 (burn)  5         11        80        450

Neutral and acidic
phenolics (counts/mg)   21,067    20,541    9,094     1,733     3,277
Astrigency
(mg/g tannic acid eq.)    8.38     8.46      6.5        4.87     4.67
Total nonstructural
carbohydrates (%)         9.4     10.6       10.1       5.1      5.7
Total nitrogen (%)        2.44     2.27       2.27      2.61     2.58
Total phosphorus (%)      0.36     0.38       0.44      0.44     0.36
Potassium (%)             1.44     1.29       1.40      1.83     1.55
Calcium (%)               2.40     2.70       2.50      2.71     2.40
Magnesium (%)             0.56     0.48       0.48      0.51     0.46
Sodium (%)                0.02     0.04       0.01      0.08     0.01
Copper (p/m)              6.45     6.44       5.89      7.44     6.00
Zinc (p/m)               24.26    22.91      24.3      27.87    23.10
Iron (p/m)              147.89    94.00     134.44    103,44    99.00
IVDMD %                  63.0     65.8       60.6      64.7     59.7

Nutrient composition for bunchberry has been determined for different
regions [43,85]:

                   se Alaska      New England    Wisc.     Canada

Nitrogen (%)       2.01           1.79           1.52      ----
Phosphorus (%)     0.22           0.25           0.25      0.19
Potassium (%)      1.04           1.35           1.14      0.38
Calcium (%)        2.58           3.09           0.85      0.98
Magnesium (%)      0.49           0.45           0.68      0.27
Copper (p/m)       5.2            5              2         ----
Magnesium (p/m)  211.6          529            149       101
Iron (p/m)        75.3          101            117        68
Zinc (p/m)        86.6           46             30         ----


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
NO-ENTRY


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Bunchberry is cultivated as an ornamental groundcover because of its
showy flowers and fruits and attractive fall coloring [49,96].
Occasional plants with reddish or purplish bracts are considered to be
separate forms by horticulturists [49].  Bunchberry fruit can be used
for jelly and pies [96].  The fruit can also be eaten fresh and was used
by native people [40,56].

In a field study of the effects of acid rain, bunchberry was found to
neutralize acid rain better than Canada mayflower (Maianthenum
canadense), wild sarsaparilla (Aralia nudicaulis), or mountain maple
(Acer spicatum).  It has many trichomes rich in calcium present on its
leaf surfaces that may be largely responsible for neutralizing the acid.
There is as well a continuing reduction in hydrogen ions that may be the
result of an ion-exchange process [32].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Bunchberry's slender and shallow rhizomes make it vulnerable to soil
disturbance.  Consequently, it is most important in early succession
where there has been little soil disturbance from logging [5].  In
northern Idaho, bunchberry increases in frequency following logging
without fire and with piling and burning.  It increases slightly
following broadcast burns [64].  Bunchberry appears to increase its
cover following logging without burning in Ontario red pine (Pinus
resinosa) and eastern white pine (P. strobus) forests [86].  Following
various logging treatments in northwestern Montana, bunchberry decreased
in presence but increased in cover when compared with untreated stands
[29,30].

Related categories for Species: Cornus canadensis | Bunchberry