AMERICAN BEAUTYBERRY

(Callicarpa americana)

A plant of American beautyberry

Family: Verbenaceae

Other names: French Mulberry

American beautyberry is a wild growing fruit native to USA.  It occurs naturally from Maryland, south to Florida, and southwesterly into Tennessee, Arkansas, and Texas. Besides United States, it also grows in Mexico, Bermuda, the Bahamas and Cuba.

This plant is mostly found growing in relatively open, well drained, rich woodlands and dry hammocks.

Description:

A deciduous shrub, 1.8-2.4 m tall with slender, spreading branches.

Leaves, opposite on 1.2 to 2.5 cm  to stalks; oval to elliptic, pointed at both ends, finely toothed; 3 to 6 in. long, slightly rough.

Flowers lavender or bluish, small, 4-lobed, in axillary clusters. Spring. Fruit light-purple, round, 3 mm wide.

Fruits thin-skinned, with white, moist mealy pulp, and 3 or 4 minute, bony, yellow seeds; borne in showy, compact axillary clusters surrounding the stems. Fall.

            Seeds 3-4, minute and bony.

Utilization:  

The fruits are edible and taste sweet. But these cannot be eaten in larger quantities because after some time there is a feeling of astringency in mouth.  The berries can also be made into jam and jelly.

Bearing in American beautiberry

Roots of this fruit are used to make herbal tea.

As a folk remedy it has been claimed that Fresh, crushed leaves of American beautiberry act as insect repellant. A plant compound, callicarpenal isolated from this plant, has been found to be effective in tests as a mosquito repellent

Cultivation:

American beautyberry is a very adaptable plant and grows almost on every kind of location.  It is very drought tolerant.

            New plants can be raised from seed.  Semi-hardwood cuttings are also root readily.  It is better to use cuttings.

            This plant is quite suitable for growing in the gardens for landscaping.