Photo courtesy of provenwinners.com
Wondrous snowberries
Glimmering white or blushing pink, snowberries add a festive touch to any shrub border
White snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus)
A native shrub of the woodland fringes, snowberry has wee pink flowers in early summer followed by showy clusters of startlingly white berries (hence the nickname, ghost berries). These last well into winter—until the birds finally eat them up. Growing five to six feet tall, snowberry can spread to form dense thickets, so while not ideal for small urban plots, it makes a fine informal hedge. It is a hardy soul, adaptable to most soils, and quite lovely paired with redtwig dogwood. ‘White Hedge’ is a compact, heavily fruiting cultivar to look for. **Zone 3.**
‘Amethyst’ snowberry (S. x doorenbosii ‘Amethyst’) (pictured)
This hybrid snowberry (also called coralberry) has masses of pastel to vivid pink berries that contrast beautifully with the dark green leaves. It was developed in Germany for florists—its elegant fruited branches can last three weeks in a vase—but is equally ornamental in the garden. Possessing a twiggy but tidy form, it grows up to five feet tall in any well-drained soil in sun or part shade. **Zone 3.**
‘Magic Berry’ snowberry (S. x d. ‘Magic Berry’)
Another German hybrid, this spell-binding snowberry (or coralberry) boasts graceful arching branches laden first with little pink flowers, then rosy pink fruit that darken over time to near cranberry. Like its siblings, it holds its berries for ages and is very dramatic planted en masse. It gets three to five feet tall and appreciates comparable growing conditions. **Zone 4.**
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