Last week we discussed control of the invasive bush honeysuckle and its effect on our local ecosystem. Many homeowners are sad to see bush honeysuckle removed, as the shrub can be attractive in the landscape.
While the flowers and berries are attractive, bush honeysuckle is invasive, and there are many other appealing, non-invasive options for flowering and fruiting landscape shrubs.
Black Chokeberry (Aronia melanocarpa): This low-maintenance shrub has beautiful white flowers in the spring and blueberry-sized black berries. In the fall, its normally dark green, glossy leaves develop a purple to red fall color. As the common name indicates, the berries have a strong, unpleasant flavor but are sometimes used for jams and jellies. With seasonal interest in the spring and fall and adaptability to both sun and shade, this is an excellent shrub for your landscape. Notable varieties are Autumn Magic, which is more compact, and McKenzie, Nero and Viking, which are suitable for juice making.
Purple Beautyberry (Callicarpa dichotoma): Purple beautyberry are small to midsized shrubs that showcase incredible bright purple berries in the fall. The shrub shape is often arching although pruning and variety selection does impact overall shape. The shrub also produces white flowers in the summer (June-July) and will grow well in full sun to part shade. Notable varieties include Early Amethyst, which produces more fruit, and Albifructus, which produces white fruit. I would be remiss if I did not mention that the white fruit of Albifuctus alongside the purple of Early Amethyst would make a stunning combination for fans of a certain school.
Japanese Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles japonica): This shrub is most recognized for it’s incredible orange-red flowers with yellow centers. Flowering in early spring, the shrub then produces green/yellow fruit that ripen in the fall. While edible, these fruit have a harsh taste when eaten fresh and are typically made into jams or jellies. The growth of this plant is low but wide with branches producing spines and winding around each other as they grow. This type of quince isn’t as showy as the common type but is extremely winter hardy.
Bearberry Cotoneaster (Cotoneaster dammeri): This groundcover has a mature height of 1 foot but a spread of 6 feet. Its evergreen leaves are a glossy deep green and it produces sweet-looking white flowers in early summer. In late summer it will produce red berries that stay on until winter unless eaten by wildlife. Notable varieties include Coral Beauty, which will grow 2-2 ½ feet tall, and Streib’s Findling, which is lower growing with a heavier crop of fruit.
Inkberry Holly (Ilex glabra): Native to our region, the inkberry holly is evergreen and extremely cold hardy. The spring flowers aren’t particularly notable but produces beautiful black berries that develop in the fall and persist through winter, if not eaten by wildlife. It is critical that you have both a male and female shrub in close proximity in order to produce fruit. Notable varieties include Chamzin, which is extremely cold hardy; Nigra, which typically keeps more leaves throughout the winter; and Shamrock, which has a more dense growth.
For more ideas on bush honeysuckle shrubs, check out our tree and shrub page, www.shawnee.k-state.edu/lawn-garden/trees-and-shrubs.html.
Ariel Whitely-Noll is the horticulture agent for Shawnee County Research and Extension. She can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org.