American Beautyberry

The pale pink blooms of American Beautyberry, Callicarpa Americana, appear in early summer, clustered along the arching branches of this deciduous native shrub. The flowers are highly attractive to pollinators and are followed by showy clusters of bright purple fruit. The purple fruit are edible and favored by birds, like catbirds and mockingbirds, for fall and winter forage.

Beautyberry is tough and easy to grow. It’s not picky about soil conditions and is often found growing naturally in the woods and more wild yards (planted by birds that have feasted on its fruit). It grows in sun and shade, but flowers and fruits best when it gets full, direct sun for at least part of the day. The berries are edible, but mostly flavorless and not sweet. Some industrious folks make a jelly with them – lots of sugar added! They are however, very ornamental and may be used to add a pop of color to cakes, salads, etc. The crushed leaves have been used traditionally stuffed into horse harnesses or rubbed on skin to repel mosquitos. Recently scientists with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's research division isolated three beautyberry compounds effective in repelling biting insects: callicarpenal, intermedeol and spathulenol. In particular, the callicarpenal proved to be as effective as DEET in fighting mosquitoes. Other tests found beautyberry compounds also repelled ticks and fire ants.

Beautyberry blooms in the morning light here at Native Nurseries.

Clusters of attractive beautyberries. Great food for wildlife. 

Meet Our Resident Banded Water Snake!

Every snake plays a necessary role in the functioning of our varied and delicate Florida ecosystems. Although much maligned and feared, most snakes you come across are non-venomous and none of them are threatening or aggressive unless they feel threatened by you.

Yesterday, Brian picked up one of our resident Banded Water snakes to give customers an up close look at this NON-VENOMOUS, beneficial snake. We like having these fellows around, they are never aggressive and always flee if you get too close. They also play a vital role in our ecosystem and they definitely help keep the rodents in check! 

Sadly, they are often killed by folks who mistake them for the VENOMOUS Water Moccasin (also known as Cottonmouth). The non-venomous Banded Water snake has very similar coloration, as it is in fact mimicking the Moccasin's appearance to scare off potential predators.

You can differentiate between the two snakes by looking at the shape of their head and eye structure. The venomous Water Moccasin / Cottonmouth has a sharply angular, triangle shaped head and eyes with slit pupils - like a cat's eye. I have included two photos of the venomous Water Moccasin/Cottonmouth for comparison. And to reiterate, though the Water Moccasins are venomous they, and other venomous snakes play an important role in our Florida ecology and are not aggressive unless they feel threatened. Leave them in peace and give them space and they will do the same.

ABOVE: Non-Venomous Banded Water Snake - notice the eyes and rounded head along with the black bands around the mouth.

BELOW: The venomous Water Moccasin/Cottonmouth has a sharply angular, triangle shaped head and eyes with slit pupils - like a cat's eye.

Creating Wildlife Habitat in Your Yard

One thing is certain in the life of a gardener – a garden or a yard will change over the years. Plants grow, some die, new plants sprout from seeds that land in exposed soil……..The same successional process happens in forests and other natural systems.

In my yard, my husband and I work with these natural progressions to create habitat for wildlife. When we moved into our house 25 years ago, the lot was graced with lovely tall pines and huge live oaks but all of the other plants were non-native, mostly hailing from China and Japan – . Some were invasive like coral ardisia and nandina and have been removed. Others are beautiful and functional in the landscape; for instance, the sasanqua camellia hedge that gives us privacy along one border of the property.

The most important thing we can do for wildlife in our yards is to plant native plants, which have co-evolved over the eons with native insects. The insects then provide abundant food for birds and spiders and on up through the food chain. So, when the huge pine that dominated our front yard had to be removed due to a lightening strike, we planted three new native species along the border where it was growing – longleaf pine, granny greybeard and red cedar.

Meanwhile, nature was taking its course in the same sunny area that had been shaded by the big pine. Pokeweeds and wild ageratum seeded in on their own, along with Mexican sunflower, a non-native with bright orange flowers that we planted in the butterfly garden. Certainly the judicious use of non-native, long-blooming tropical plants such as Mexican sunflower and pentas will extend the season of flowers in butterfly gardens. Just be sure that they are not invasive.

Over the years, as we removed nandinas in our borders, we replaced them with native species, such as American beautyberry, needle palm, Florida anise, agarista and wild azaleas. An opportunity for planting opened this fall, when our neighbor’s very large eight foot diameter live oak collapsed and had to be removed, changing our side yard from shady to mostly sunny. We plan to plant holly and wax myrtle.

In addition to planting native plants, it is good to have areas of leaf litter where birds can scratch around to find insects and other invertebrates. Rake the leaves from the lawn and spread in garden beds. These will compost over time, enriching the soil.

If possible, let dead trees stand; woodpeckers will thank you! Twenty years ago, we had the top of a dead pine removed in our back yard, leaving a 20 foot trunk standing. The snag rotted over time, its last remains still evident on the forest floor. I’ll always remember our two small children sneaking up to watch a Pileated Woodpecker working the lower part of the snag for insects. We replaced this pine with a spruce pine and an American beech.

There are many things you can do to garden for wildlife. Start by increasing the diversity of native plants in your yard, by planting trees and shrubs of different heights, by decreasing the size of your lawn, by providing a bird bath and by maintaining areas of leaf litter (mulch). Avoid using harmful pesticides. Most of all enjoy the fruits of your labor and take time to watch bumble bees, birds, lizards and other wildlife that utilize your yard.