Snowberry Bush ( Symphoricarpos )

 

While the snow lies outside the window, I want to think again what kind of plants I will plant in the new garden. So I decided to tell you about my favorite shrub. I love this decorative bush Symphoricarpos or Snowberry. 

Snowberry Bush with white fruit (Symphoricarpos albus) grows quickly, is unpretentious to growing conditions, photophilous, prefers calcareous soils. Well tolerates haircuts, shaping. Sometimes suffers from frost, but recovers quickly. It reproduces well and quickly by layering, stem cuttings, dividing the bush and seeds.

It blooms in summer with small pink flowers that make all pollinators happy. When comes autumn snow-white round waxy berries appear and persist until spring on Snowberry branches. Birds, small mammals eat them during winter cold months.

I want to have more Snowberry to landscape the new garden. There is only one adult snowberry bush in my garden. You may remember my summer nursery where I showed young Snowberry bushes for the new garden.

 

 Another variety is Symphoricarpos orbiculatus with red or pink fruit. At its home in North America, it is called the Indian currant, a coral berry. It grows on dry sandy and rocky soils, along river banks and in meadows. 

 

It is a rather tall shrub with thin shoots and small leaves. The flowers are as small as that of the white, and are collected in dense, short inflorescences. Berries are purple-red or coral, with a bluish bloom. 

In autumn, this shrub is also very beautiful - thin shoots with purple leaves are strewn with red berries along the entire length. Rounded Snowberry is somewhat less winter-hardy than white one.

 

The fruit of the Snowberry is inedible, but if you wish, you can try the berry, nothing will happen. Just make sure that the taste is very unpleasant. Some birds that feed on berries in winter, such as waxwings, do not disdain Snowberries, but they only eat seeds.

Do you grow this plant in your garden? Would you like to have it? What is your experience?