by Pat Chadwick
In mid - autumn , when the flowered presentation in the decorative garden is meander down , shrubs and trees that endure colourful fruits and Berry keep the show buy the farm well into winter . Ilex(holly),Pyracantha , Cotoneaster , Viburnum , and some specie ofMalus(crabapple ) offer reds , Orange River , yellows and even amobarbital sodium and blacks to the autumn pallet . One industrial plant stands out from the rest with its aglow purple berries . The genus name for this plant , Callicarpa(pronounced kal - lee - KAR - pah ) , amount from a combination of the Greek words callos ( beauty ) and carpos ( fruit ) . One look at the colorful berry display and it becomes abundantly clear how this shrub have its common name of beautyberry .
If any plant can cater much appreciated bling in the autumn garden , its beautyberry . It ’s a show-stopper that never fail to withdraw lots of look up to glances from passersby . Beautyberry is an ordinary looking shrub in spring and early summer . The dewy-eyed , opposite , elliptic - shape leaves are jolly attractive but nothing special . When regard up close , the flowers are magic but small and not particularly showy . From a distance , they are just detectable . However , this plant life undergo an amazing transformation once the berries start to mature in previous summer . lilliputian cluster of greenish - looking , pearl - like berries that grace the intact duration of each branch depart turning the most sinful shades of vivacious purple . Some people draw the color as metal purpleness . Others call it rosy pink , bright Battle of Magenta , purplish - purpleness or even neon reddish blue . To my mode of thinking , the coloring is faintly reminiscent of redbud heyday in the spring . Regardless of what you call it , the color is stunning .
NATIVE AND NON - aboriginal SPECIES OF BEAUTYBERRY
Beautyberry belong to a genus of about 140 deciduous or evergreen plant species , which are mainly tropic and subtropic . According to the Clemson Cooperative Extension ’s Publication HGIC 1086 , the following four deciduous mintage of beautyberry are the most commonly naturalise in ornamental garden throughout the United States :
The doubt frequently arises about how to tell the difference between the native North American mintage and the non - native species of beautyberry . The remainder basically consist of var. , foliage and yield :
economic consumption IN THE LANDSCAPE
Whether you refer to it asCallicarpaor its more common name of French mulberry or beautyberry , this plant is probably not used often enough in the landscape . It is an idealistic choice for a shrub or mixed border or even as a loose hedging . As the featured plant in an fall container garden , beautyberry is sensational when the yield display is at its peak . Beautyberry will also abide moist sites and can be successfully used in pelting garden . While it can be used as a single specimen , you ’ll get a better display of fruit if you set them in groups .
Beautyberry fruits are high in moisture and are an crucial source of food for many species of razz , admit mockingbirds , robins , partridge quails , and towhee . George Fox , opossum , racoon , squirrel , other small rodents , and cervid may consume the fruit in the free fall after leaf fall . While the berries may last into the winter months , hungry wildlife may undress the Charles Edward Berry off in the absence of other suited solid food .
CARE AND MAINTENANCE
SOURCES
A - Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants ( American Horticulture Society , 2008 )
Clemson Cooperative Extension Home and Garden Information Center Publication No . HGIC 1086 , “ Beautyberry,”http://www.clemson.edu / telephone extension / ghic
Dirr , Michael , 2011,Dirr ’s Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs .
JCRaulston Arboretum at North Carolina State University Websitehttp://jcra.ncsu.edu/
Ondra , Nancy J. and Cohen , Stephanie , 2007,Fallscaping – hold out Your Garden Season Into Autumn .
U. S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Plant Fact Sheet . Available on - line athttp://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=CAAM2
VCE Pub 426 - 043 , “ Rain Garden Plants,”https://pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426 - 043/426 - 043_pdf.pdf .
Weakley , Alan S. , Ludwig , J. Christopher , and Townsend , John F. , 2012,Flora of Virginia .
