American Beautyberry – Callicarpa americana

General Landscape Uses: Accent flowering shrub in residental and commerical landscapes. Also useful in buffer plantings. Ecological Restoration Notes: A relatively common shrub of forest edges nearly throughout South Florida. Description: Medium bushy shrub with arching branches forming a large mound. Leaves coarse, 2-6 inches long, aromatic when crushed. Dimensions: Typically 5-9 feet in height. Usually as broad as tall and sometimes broader. Growth Rate: Fast. Range: Southeastern United States, Maryland and Missouri west to Texas and south to the Monroe County Keys; Bermuda, Bahamas and Cuba. Very rare in the Monroe County Keys and perhaps absent south of Key Largo. Habitats: A wide range of terrestrial ecosystems. Soils: Moist, well-drained sandy, limestone or organic soils, usually with a humusy top layer. Nutritional Requirements: Moderate; can grow in nutrient poor soils, but needs some organic content to thrive. Salt Water Tolerance: Low; does not tolerate long-term flooding by salt or brackish water. Salt Wind Tolerance: Moderate; grows near salt water, but is protected from direct salt spray by other vegetation. Drought Tolerance: High; does not require any supplemental water once established. Light Requirements: Full sun to light shade. Flower Color: Pink or rarely white. Flower Characteristics: Semi-showy in dense clusters. Flowering Season: All year; peak spring-summer. Fruit: Red-purple berry-like drupe, rarely white. Very showy clusters in the leaf axils. All year; peak summer-fall. Wildlife and Ecology: Provides significant food and moderate amounts of cover for wildlife. Nectar plant for butterflies. Birds eat the attractive fruits. Horticultural Notes: Grown from seed. Clean pulp from seed by rubbing on a paper towel or by placing into a blender with water and then straining. Sprinkle seeds into a pot with 2″ or more potting soil. Place in light shade or full sun and keep moist. Comments: This is an excellent and adaptable shrub for nearly throughout South Florida. Periodic heavy pruning nearly to the ground encourages new growth.