Beautyberry
Callicarpa americana
In October, metallic violet-purple berries ring every stem in a color that hardly looks real. Birds strip them through November and December.
Typically 1 quart–3 gal · $17–$85 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
The most electrically colored fall berries of any native shrub. those violet-purple clusters in October and November stop every visitor in their tracks.
In October, beautyberry becomes something that doesn't look real. The clusters of metallic violet-purple berries ring every stem in tight whorls, the color so saturated and electric it reads almost artificial. There's nothing else in the native shrub palette that produces this color. It's genuinely startling the first time you see it in person. The small pink-lavender flowers through summer are modest but attract native bees. Then fall happens and the entire shrub transforms. Birds, particularly mockingbirds, brown thrashers, and robins, eat the berries through November and December, stripping them stem by stem. Cut it to the ground each spring and it regrows vigorously, keeping a fresh, well-structured form.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown beautyberry propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
Plant beautyberry instead of Asian beautyberry (Callicarpa japonica, C. dichotoma). Same job in the garden, without the spread.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 4–6 ft · 4–6 ft wide
- Bloom time
- Summer
- Bloom color
- Pink, Lavender
- USDA zones
- 6–11
- Family
- Lamiaceae
- Native range
- Southeastern United States
Care notes for beautyberry.
Full sun to part shade in average, well-drained soil. Cut back to 12–18 inches in early spring. it blooms and fruits on new wood and regenerates quickly. Tolerates clay and somewhat dry conditions once established. Not reliably hardy above zone 6; may die back to roots in cold winters but regenerates from the base.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside beautyberry.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.