| Common Name | American beautyberry; purple beauty-berry |
| Genus | Callicarpa |
| Species | americana |
| Family | Lamiaceae |
| Life Cycle | Woody perennial |
| Bundle Size | 10 bare roots per bundle |
| Care | All of these plants will ship to you from Vermont in early April. They will be just coming out of dormancy. You may see swelling buds or a bit of new growth, but in general they will be in a dormant state and may look a little dead. Don't worry! They will wake up. You may see a bit of mold on the roots but this is completely normal. Simply wash it off and plant immediately. As a precaution you can treat the roots with a fungicide or biofungicide, but this isn't necessary. Small broken branches are also of little concern. Just prune off any broken bits and the plant will recover quickly. The root system is the important part at this stage in the game. If you can't plant immediately on arrival store your bare roots in the cooler.The cold will delay their growth. Keep them from freezing. You can either pot them into 1 gallon pots or plant them directly into your prepared soil. Just make sure to plant them within a few days of arrival. They are waking up and are ready to grow, and they will decline quickly if they are not given soil, water and sunshine. This is a carefully orchestrated process to get plants quickly from their storage conditions to you so please do your part and be ready to plant them on arrival. There is no reason that these plants will experience any stress if you prepare for their arrival. |
| Netting / Staking | None |
| Hardiness | Hardy zones 6-9 (and possibly 5-10) |
| Spacing | Spacing 4-5' and mature height is 5-6' |
| Soil Preference | Any type; good drainage is essential. Performs well in acidic soil. |
| Light | Full sun |
| Water | Callicarpa grows best on a moist soil in partial shade or sun. However, the soil should not be too moist. It is important to make the soil thoroughly permeable and remove hard layers before planting the Callicarpa. |
| When to Plant | Spring, when the ground is workable. |
| Harvesting |
Wait until the berries are fully grown and have their full color before cutting. It is important not to prune the branches too early. The leaf of the callicarpa has an oval shape and lets the plant branch until late in fall. The leaves turn yellow before they fall on the ground and the berries get their important purple feature in late fall or early winter. The ideal cutting time is when the leaves have fallen and the berries have their full color. Plan to harvest your first branches approximately three years after planting the bare root shrubs. Don't expect to harvest in year 1 or 2, but more material can be cut each year as the plants mature (typically 10+ stems). |
| Post Harvest Care | Keep cut branches in a cool and not too sunny place, which will help the purple hue to last as long as possible. |
| Diseases / Insects | No significant pests or disease issues. |
| Bailey's Notes | These tall upright shrubs are a bit boring to look at in the summer, but once they drop their foliage, the show begins. The berries are not very tasty to birds so they are not at immediate risk of bird attack. I love purple in the autumn. There are so many pink and purple tones in the fall landscape and Magical Deep Purple will play well with flowering kale, pink and purple mums, Caryopteris and all of your other fall favorites. It also contrasts beautifully with orange and rusty tones. Magical Snowqueen is a rare gem. Most white varieties brown easily, but these pure white plump berries keep their color and hold well. Perfect for autumn and winter weddings or even a bit of Christmas decorating. |
| Resources |
North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox Callicarpa americana |
