What a terrible time men have finding gifts for women. Since I am always on a diet this immediately cuts out two of the possible gifts, chocolate candy and a dinner out. That leaves the possibility of perfume (hope he knows the correct brand). A beautiful card or hand written note telling of his undying love is a good choice or jewelry. The last choice is sexy underwear that always seems to surprise women, like “you really want me to wear this”?
I love to garden so this year my gift is Winterberry plants. Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a deciduous holly. Unlike most hollies they lose their leaves when fall arrives. This produces a beautiful plant with outstanding red berries shining on bare limbs that would look better in the fancy nightgown than me.
Winterberries are native to the eastern United States. They can thrive in sun or shade and can tolerate various soils if it is acidic. More berries are produced if they are planted in full sun. They can even grow in standing water, which makes them an excellent choice for a bog area or around a pond. This upright shrub has multiple stems. The bark is thin, smooth and grayish-brown in color. The fruit or berries are 1/4 inch in diameter, reddish-orange to bright red hanging in clusters of 2 to 4 berries.
Winterberry looks great in a woodland setting, a foundation planting, or in a mixed shrub border. They also have a slow growth rate. Since they are native they don’t require fertilizing, spraying or pruning. Note I keep saying they, this is a plant that you need two (a male and a female) to produce fruit.
Bluebird Eating Holly Berry
Luckily you can plant the male in the back- ground within 10 to 15 feet of the female and still get berries. One male plant can typically pollinate 6 or more females. Male winterberry plants don’t produce fruit. When ordering or buying from a nursery make sure you have the correct pollinating male for the female plant.
Winterberry makes an effective showy border and comes in a variety of sizes. ‘Winter Red’ is the standard and grows 8 to 10 feet tall. If you plant ‘Winter Red’ also plant ‘Southern Gentleman’ for pollination. ‘Red Sprite’ is the smallest variety with the largest berries and grows 2 to 4 feet. ‘Red Sprite’ would be your best choice for a small garden.
In summer Winterberry has rich green foliage. In fall the leaves turn yellow before revealing cluster of bright red fruit. The fruit will persist into late winter unless the birds find them. Being a native plant birds will enjoy foraging on the berries until they are gone. I love to have birds in the garden so losing the berries is a small trade off. Cut winterberry branches can be used in flower arrangements and for Christmas decorating. These beautiful branches with bright red berries can hold their berries for months.
Getting the greatest impact from bark or berries can be tricky. A contrasting background of evergreens will help my winterberries to stand out. I am obviously going to need a row of evergreens to show them off to their best advantage. This project is definitely going to need mulch and watering for the first few years. Maybe jewelry would have been cheaper.
