NICE! Plant of the Month
(Callicarpa americana)
Family: Verbenaceae
Type: Perennial multi-branched shrub.
Natural Habitat: Prefers moist woods and stream terraces. Range is from Bermuda, Cuba and Florida, north to Maryland and west to Bexar and Kendall counties.
Growth: 3 to 7 feet.
Deer Resistance: Deer rarely touch its leaves.
Wildlife: Songbirds and small mammals eat American beautyberry fruit .
Light Tolerance: Part shade.
Flowers: White, pink, or bluish flowers appear in late spring to early summer .
Fruit: 2-inch clusters of berrylike purple fruit. Shrubs with white clusters are rare.
Leaves: Simple, large, broad, light green leaves. Coarsely toothed margins; deciduous.
Water Requirements: Low.
Soil Requirements: Sand, loam, clay; acid or calcareous; moist, well drained.
Planting Instructions: Space plants 10 feet apart. Dig a hole at least two times wider than, but the same depth as the root ball in the nursery container. Sides of the hole should be irregular, not smooth. Remove plant from container, taking care to support the root ball. Loosen exterior roots gently with your fingers. If the plant is root-bound and cannot be loosened by hand, the outer roots may be cut in several places. Lift the plant by the root ball and place into the hole. Backfill hole, using soil that was dug out. Do not add any soil to the top of the root ball. Gently firm the soil with your hands, but do not tamp it down. Place 3-4 inches of mulch over the bare soil around, but not touching the base of the plant.
Watering Instructions after planting: Water deeply after planting to settle soil around roots. Then water every 7-10 days, as needed, during the first growing season. Before watering, check soil moisture at a depth of an inch or two at the edge of the root ball. Skip a watering after a rainfall of ½ to 1 inch. Maintain this watering schedule until the first fall. Reduce watering during the cool and winter months. In a “normal” year, no watering may be necessary during the fall and winter, but during a dry period, monthly watering may be needed. Second spring and thereafter: Water monthly only during the periods of drought. Once established, native will survive with little supplemental irrigation.
NICE! Tip: This large shrub works well as an understory plant. It must have lots of space to spread out its long, arching branches. American beautyberry is at its best in the fall when bunches of glossy fruit weigh down its branches. Its leaves are not its best feature; they tend to droop in the summer. The white-berried shrub makes a good contrast to the more common purple-berried American beautyberry. Shrub can be propagated from seed or wood cutting.
Look for the NICE! Plant of the Month signs and information sheets on your next visit to a participating Boerne nursery. And thank you for supporting native plants by using them in your landscapes.
