The Berry-Producing Shrub That Will Keep Birds & Wildlife Fed All Fall And Winter

With the nip of fall in the air, gardeners may be wondering how to winterize their garden to support wildlife through the frigid and snowy season. You may want to consider planting beautyberry (Callicarpa americana), a native shrub that provides color-changing berries from summer into fall — and winter, too. With this plant, you will see a parade of color as lavender-pink blossoms transition to green berries in the summer months. Then those berry clusters will mature to a bold purple later in the season. Cardinals will flock to your yard for the berries on this beautiful bush, as will more than 40 other bird species, including bobwhite quails, mockingbirds, robins, finches, brown thrashers, eastern towhees, and wrens. Avian consumers of the clustered berries benefit from their high moisture content. Small mammals such as raccoons, foxes, opossum, and even armadillos will also consume the food source from the shrub.

If you are not a big fan of the color purple, you can find cultivars with pink, white, or cream-colored berries. You can also expect your beautyberry shrub to be around for a long time, which will please the local wildlife. This woody perennial, in the mint (Lamiaceae) family is drought tolerant and adaptable to various types of soil.

If you want to grow this beautiful plant, it should be noted that American beautyberry (C. americana) thrives in USDA zones 7-11. You can plant seeds or rooted cuttings in a spot with full sun if you want optimal berry production. However, the plant can also tolerate light shade. Gardeners have observed that berry output increases when several same-type shrubs are nearby. It can adapt to almost any soil type if it is well drained and rich with organic material. Expect your beautyberry to grow anywhere between 6 to 10 feet in height, but make sure you allow space for this growth. When it comes to shrub maintenance, the ideal time to prune is late winter or early spring, but a light touch up can be performed in other seasons if it looks like it's in need of rejuvenation. However, beautyberry is one of the plants you shouldn't prune in the summer. 

Beautyberry is compatible with many garden settings; you can even mass the shrubs as a privacy screen. It is mostly disease and pest-free, although leaf spots may occasionally arise. Since it is so easy to care for, consider placing it in a naturalized setting that aligns with the shrub's support for wildlife. Beautyberry will make a gorgeous contribution to your garden and provide so much bounty for your avian friends.