Gardeners, I suppose, are an optimistic lot, sometimes ignoring the obvious for years, or even a lifetime. There is ample evidence that I am a slow learner, with lessons too often requiring a decade or two, if they are ever to be learned. And, so it is with winter berries, or at least many berries…
Tag: red berries
For the birds
In late February, abundant berries remain on nandinas (Nandina domestica, above) and many of the hollies (Ilex spp.) in the garden. The uneaten berries are typical, I suppose evidence that these are unappetizing to all but the hungriest birds. Even in years when I’ve been discouraged from stocking the bird feeder due to the growing…
Berry nice
None of the four variegated English hollies (Ilex aquifolium ‘Argentea Marginata’, below) in the garden has any berries at all. They never have. No doubt, this is a result of not having a male pollinator handy at the appropriate time, so I must be satisfied only by the handsome foliage. It seems a small investment in…
Berries in early autumn
Through spring and summer the foliage and flowers of beautyberry (Callicarpa dichotoma ‘Issai’, below) are unremarkable. The dull green leaves are carried on arching stems that are hardly graceful, and even when fully in flower the ornamental value of beautyberry is forgettable. But, in late summer the tiny blooms fade and small berries appear, which progressively…
(Un)remarkable in winter
The magnificent native dogwood (Cornus florida) is not much to look at in the dead of winter, though references and overly enthusiastic garden writers might imply that it has four season interest. The clusters of red berries that are evident when the foliage drops in mid autumn (and are the basis of the four season…
More hollies
The variegated English hollies (Ilex aquifolium ‘Argenteo marginata’, below) have no berries. I suppose that all four are males, or perhaps there is not a male pollinator for the females. I’m not observant enough to detect the sex of the hollies from the flowers, so I’ll enjoy the variegated foliage and if they should ever get…
Hollies, berry nice!
Before finishing up here today we’ll have a good idea of the number of hollies in the garden. I haven’t counted (and won’t), but I’m guessing the number will be a dozen, and possibly a few more. I suppose that I can recall all the varieties, and then how many of each are planted, so…
Sparkleberry, or no sparkle berries?
The Sparkleberry hollies (Ilex serrata x verticillata ‘Sparkleberry’, below) are bare. The leaves are supposed to be gone by now, but in most years the branches are cloaked with an abundance of red berries. Not this year. I blame environmental factors, though I’m guessing and really haven’t a clue why the berries are missing. The…
Ramblin' through Dave's Garden 