There is no greater gift for the gardener than to discover a welcome native plant growing in the perfect place in the garden. Such is the case with this American beautyberry,
Callicarpa americana.
I espied this plant through the laundry room window long before berries were in evidence. A weed, I thought, but promptly forgot about it. I'm glad I did because recently I recognized it was a Beautyberry. A gift from the birds. I have planted two of these plants outside the garden walls where they rely on rainfall. So far all they have done is survive. No berries.
There is no greater gift for the gardener than to discover a welcome native plant growing in the perfect place in the garden. Such is the case with this American beautyberry, Callicarpa americana.
I espied this plant through the laundry room window long before berries were in evidence. A weed, I thought, but promptly forgot about it. I'm glad I did because recently I recognized it was a Beautyberry. A gift from the birds. I have planted two of these plants outside the garden walls where they rely on rainfall. So far all they have done is survive. No berries.
I had the same gift, a beautiful beauty berry appearing in one of my beds. This year, the birds are taking their own gift by eating all of the berries before they turn purple!
ReplyDeleteJenny, those birds are bery (typo, but kind of appropriate) generous with you. We use beautyberry in the flower shop this time of year. Customers always ask if they are real, no one can believe that Mother Nature is so clever.
ReplyDeleteI love Beautyberry too. Such a versatile plant and the berries are an incredible color.
ReplyDeleteMy friend Iris (Society Garlic) gave me a Mexican Feathergrass last spring. I never got around to planting it and left it in the pot all summer. Now I have a feathergrass AND a lovely Beautyberry in the pot! How nice is that!
ReplyDeleteYou are fortunate to have many volunteers pop up in just the right spot. I'm thinking of your retama tree also. I think you have more patience with volunteers than I do, and I expect that's the reason.
ReplyDeleteBonnie- I had o idea that such a nice plant would seed so easily. I may try seeding a few myself- or do they have to pass through the bird's intestine before they germinate?
ReplyDeleteDeborah- Do you strip off the leaves? The berries do seem rather juicy and fragile.
Sweet Bay- Those berries really look fake don't they? Very pretty.
Neleh- Do you have a blog? can't link because your profile is not activated.
PAm- You know me I have trouble pulling plants out. Not all place themselves so well. Mostly they are right in the way of where you walk and although I am tolerant of them D hates it. I did manage to win him over to save the retama though.
Yes, we strip the leaves off, they do not seem to last well, and hide some of the beauty of the berry.
ReplyDelete