Feeling "In the Pink" With Coral Berry

Spring color in the garden? I have it. Summer color? Got it, and I can always add more with annuals. Fall color? Well… that’s where I should focus more.

Where I live, with four seasons of distinctly different weather, spring color comes in the form of Daffodils, Tulips, and Allium. Summer means Irises, Daylilies, and much more. And fall used to get its color from Euonymus alatus, known as Burning Bush, until it was deemed invasive and got scratched off the list of plants which can be bought anew. Now, in fall… well again, that is where I should focus more. 

And I am focusing more on fall color. To start, I just purchased three Proud Berry® Coral Berry shrubs, which are Proven Winners® deciduous shrubs that flower in summer and hold tight to pink berries in fall and through winter. 

You might wonder why I have noted “pink”, not “red”. After all, most berries are of a reddish tone. And I do have Holly which brings bright red cheer to winter. But Coral Berry does indeed have pink berries—both dark and light pink, in fact. Never before have I seen anything like them. So while my fall color may have been lacking up to now, Coral Berry will help me greet future years with well-behaved shrubs (maxing out at 3-4’ tall and wide) with nicely rounded leaves in a blue-green tone all spring and summer, white flowers as summer progresses, and pink berries when fall comes around.

My Coral Berry shrubs were mailed to me. Arriving beautifully packaged, they were no worse for the wear from their trip. My Coral Berry shrubs already had grown to about half a foot above the tops of their containers by the time they arrived at my door. At their present tender age, they have branches that are slim. I know these branches will grow thicker and woodier as my shrubs mature. But even now, they are covered in sweet, rounded leaves. The leaves have coloration that is different from those of most shrubs I have. They are a calming blue-green. These matte leaves will serve as attractive backdrops to the light pink berries, large and looking as though they have been buffed to develop a slight sheen. These berries are what prompted me to make this purchase, and certainly, they must be the “draw” for most people.

Now I have read that Coral Berry, with these unusual orbs that are so attractive to the human eye, will not be bothered by animals who might want to strip these fruiting meadow shrubs for food. The berries, inedible to humans, will serve as a snack to a bird or two. But larger creatures such as deer will not touch them. That means that, for the most part, when I need it most, my garden will have a new color that will go undisturbed. I will have added an unusual pink to draw in the eyes of all who visit. 

Berries eventually will be plucked by avian friends, but my Coral Berry shrubs will hold tight to them throughout fall and much of winter. Because American Robins are said to like the fruit of the Coral Berry, I will be prepared to lose them next spring when the Robins return. But with temperatures too cold for these birds in winter, the berries will be mine for months and months when little else is colorful.

With many plants and shrubs, I can speak from experience. I have made gardening mistakes, and I also have had gardening successes. But with Coral Berry shrubs, I can draw on no personal experience. Still, everything I have read says that at minimum, I can expect great color in return for minimal effort in tending the Coral Berry. 

Planting my Coral Berry shrubs means that I am preparing for good returns later. Come fall, I suspect these Coral Berry shrubs will take over where other colorful plants have left off. They will keep me feeling “in the pink”.