Beautyberry

This is an American beautyberry bush (Callicarpa americana) which lives in my front yard. It spends most of the year being a somewhat boring shrub with insignificant tiny flowers. But the fruit in the fall is this brilliant purple/magenta, which really stands out.

The berries are edible, but not very good. Some people do make jelly from them, which proves that if you add enough sugar to things, they eventually taste better. Also notice that some critter is eating the leaves on this plant – that is NOT a bad thing. It’s a native plant, that has coevolved with the bug life in this region for many thousands of years. I want the bugs to eat my plants, because I want the birds that eat the bugs.

People think of berries when planting for birds, but berries only last a few weeks – bugs are year round. Plant for bugs if you want birds. No bugs, no birds. It’s that simple. If your plants are not being eaten, they are not part of the ecosystem.