Cramp Bark Tea

This handsome shrub has a showy apperance of flowers in June. Native to Northern parts of the U.S. and Canada, it grows in rich lowland and wooded areas. In Russia these shrubs are planted in parks as well as home gardens. The red, acidic berries resemble low-bush cranberries. The berries are used fresh or dried and are sometimes used like cranberries. The flowers can be used in a decoction for external use but the bark is normally the part used in herbal medicine.