Ok, ok, the alliteration was probably totally unnecessary, but I just couldn’t resist, and besides, it gives you a pretty good idea what this article is going to be about doesn’t it?!
Of course we could talk about all sorts of Holly (Ilex spp.) varieties and that would cover berries pretty easily, but how about a couple you may not have thought of.
Beautyberry (Callicarpa)
What makes this deciduous shrub a little different from other berry producing shrubs is the color of the berries. Rather than the usual some kind of orange/red hue, Beautyberries have a beautiful purple bloom. Yes, that’s right, purple! They also have a nice, almost metallic looking, sheen to them which makes them seem even more interesting.
Depending on the variety they can get anywhere from 4 – 8′ tall, and have a nice bushy appearance.
Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)
This is another deciduous shrub that makes up for it’s lack of leaves in the Winter by having a profusion of berries from Fall onward into the colder months.
The one caveat with Winterberry Hollies is that they do need a male within the vicinity of the female to produce berries. Generally one male for every three females is a pretty good ratio.
Cranberry Viburnum (Viburnum opulus)
There are a lot of Viburnum varieties available in today’s market, and all of them have endearing aspects, but for a great show of Cranberry red berries you just can’t beat Cranberry Viburnum, which is a good thing, otherwise it would have been very poorly named!
There are also other features to this Viburnum which make it an appealing choice, such as it’s creamy blooms in Spring, and it’s awesome Fall color, but for me it’s the berries that make this one a true winner.
Inkberry (Ilex glabra)
Prefer something a little darker? How about an Inkberry?
This evergreen Holly gets nice glossy dark purple, almost black, berries on it. Again, it’s a plant that was appropriately named.
While the species can eventually reach heights of about 8′, we generally carry the dwarf varieties here at the garden center (either “Nigra” or “Shamrock”) as we have found them to have a tidier growth habit, and they are more suitable in most situations as a foundation planting, only getting 5-6′ tall.
One other thing that’s noteworthy about Inkberries, they can stand boggy situations, so can be planted where many other shrubs would not survive.