Beautyberry

Beautyberry: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Upright shrub of 1.5–3 m.

Leaf

Opposite, 5–12 cm, elliptic with a long pointed tip, finely toothed, softly hairy underneath; bronze when young, pink to purple in autumn.

Bark

Greyish-brown, upright twigs.

Flower

Small lilac flowers in dense clusters in the leaf axils, in July–August.

Fruit

Glossy violet berries (3–4 mm) in dense clusters, from October until well into winter; not edible.

Difference from snowberry

Snowberry has larger, white berries and small, round leaves.

Flowering: July–August · Pruning: March–April

Identify by feature: Purple or blue flowers

Looks like it, but isn’t

• Snowberry Symphoricarpos albus: larger, white berries and small, round leaves. Difference from snowberry

Why grow it?

• A colour you will not see anywhere else: glossy purple berries from October until well into winter.
• Lovely berried branches for bouquets.
• Pink to purple autumn colour.
• Bees on the small summer flowers.

Beautyberry: where does it grow best?

• Sun or partial shade; it sets the most berries in sun.
• Ordinary, well-drained garden soil that does not dry out.
• Allow 2 m width.
• Ideally sheltered: in hard frost the shoot tips can be killed back.

Light

Sun or partial shade

Legal basis

Any garden soil

Moisture

Normal

Size

2 m tall, 2 m wide

Hardiness

Throughout Belgium, no protection needed

Goes well with

• Holly: Evergreen leaves and red berries beside the purple ones: colour together in winter.
• Panicled hydrangea: Flowers in late summer and is also pruned in spring: together a border with something to offer until winter.
• Common dogwood: Red twigs in winter beside the purple berries.

Good and bad companions

Goes well with

• Suits the woodland edge or the light shade of: ginkgo, box elder, ash, honey locust, field maple, silver maple

Beautyberry: when and how to plant it?

1. Plant from October to April, root-balled or from a pot, when the ground is not frozen.
2. Ideally plant two or three together, 1–1.5 m apart: you will get far more berries.
3. Dig a generous planting hole and mix in some compost.
4. Water generously after planting, and in dry spells during the first year.

Care

Watering

In dry spells in the first year; after a dry summer it sets fewer berries.

Feeding

A little compost in spring.

Mulch

A layer of leaves or wood chips keeps the soil moist.

Berried branches

Feel free to cut a few branches for a vase in autumn: they last a long time.

Tip: Plant it close to a path or where the low autumn sun falls on the berries: the purple beads look best up close.

Beautyberry: when to prune it?

Pruning months: March–April.

When: End of winter (March–April).

How:

• It flowers on new shoots: cut the oldest branches back low down and shorten overlong ones.
• After a severe winter it sprouts again from the base: cut frost-damaged branches back to healthy wood.
• An oversized shrub can be cut back hard; because it flowers on new shoots, it will still bear berries the same year.

Caution: Do not prune in autumn: you would cut off the berried branches. In April, check for nesting birds.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Summer cuttings

In June–July, take 10 cm cuttings of young, semi-ripe shoots and root them under glass or plastic.

Layering

Bend a low branch to the ground and cover it with soil; after a year it will have roots.

Beautyberry: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy throughout Belgium: no protection needed.

• Hardy; in hard frost the shoot tips can be killed back, but it sprouts again in spring.
• After leaf fall the purple berries hang on the bare branches, often until well into winter: birds usually leave them for a long time.

Diseases and pests

• Few berries: A single shrub, too much shade or a dry summer means fewer berries. Plant several together, in sun.
• Frost damage: Dead shoot tips after a severe winter. Cut them back to healthy wood in March–April.
• Untidy shrub: Without pruning it becomes bare at the base and full of old wood. Remove a few old branches every spring.

Through the year

• January: Purple berries on the bare branches.
• March: Pruning: cut the oldest branches back low down.
• April: Last pruning month; plant.
• June: Take summer cuttings.
• July: Flowering: small lilac flowers in the leaf axils.
• August: Flowering; water in dry spells.
• October: Purple berries and pink to purple autumn colour.
• November: Berried branches for bouquets; plant.

What can you use it for?

Garden and landscape

Shrub for colour in autumn and winter; the berried branches look lovely in bouquets.

For wildlife

Bees visit the small summer flowers; birds usually leave the berries on for a long time.

Did you know?

• Callicarpa literally means ‘beautiful fruit’, just like the Dutch name. Plant a few shrubs together and you will get far more berries.
• The species name bodinieri honours Émile Bodinier, a French missionary who collected plants in China in the late 19th century.
• ‘Profusion’ is the best-known garden variety, chosen for its abundant berries.