From lilacs and forsythia to roses and hydrangeas, most shrubs peak in beauty from spring to fall. But that doesn’t mean you have to endure a long, drab winter. Although your garden is less vibrant this time of year, some shrubs actually show off all winter long with branches covered in brilliantly colored berries.
Shrubs with winter berries offer long-lasting color to your sleeping garden. Berry-laden branches welcome backyard birds to enjoy the bounty, too. You also can take a few snips of these beautiful and hardy shrubs to use in winter floral arrangements, wreaths, and centerpieces throughout the holiday season and beyond.
When planting, make sure to choose shrubs that can tolerate winters in your USDA Hardiness Zone (find yours here). Don’t forget that fall is a great time for planting shrubs in much of the country; just make sure you have about six weeks of moderate weather ahead of you so the plants have time to get established. Then water plants deeply and regularly until the ground freezes, which is late November to December, depending on where you live and the temperatures you’re having.
Ahead, our favorite berry-covered shrubs for winter interest:
1) Winterberry Holly
Photo credit: Johnathan A. Esper, Wildernesscapes Photography – Getty Images
Ilex verticillata
Birds love it, and deer don’t, which makes this attractive native shrub a winner in your landscape. Bright red or pale gold berries adorn the branches all winter long. Look for dwarf varieties such as ‘Berry Poppins,’ which stay more compact so that they won’t take over your landscape. Also, remember that holly needs a male and a female plant to produce berries. Read the plant description so you purchase the correct plants for pollination to occur.
Read more: How to Grow a Holly Bush
2) Juniper
Photo credit: Ed Reschke – Getty Images
Juniperus spp.
This evergreen makes a lovely addition to the garden for its silvery to blue-green foliage. Many varieties also produce blue “berries” that aren’t actually berries; they’re small seed cones that birds such as cedar waxwings adore. Like hollies, many junipers have male and female plants, and some varieties produce no cones. Read the description to be sure about what you’re buying. ‘Alpine Carpet’ has especially intensely blue cones.
Read more: Choose the Right Evergreen Shrubs for Your Yard
3) Red Chokeberry
Photo credit: Stuart Westmorland – Getty Images
Aronia arbutifolia
White spring flowers are followed by red fruit and bright red fall foliage on this native shrub. This multistemmed deciduous shrub looks great when massed in borders, and it’s a tough plant that works equally well in heat, drought, and poor soils. Birds love these berries!
Read more: 9 Unexpected Foods That Attract More Birds to Your Yard
4) Snowberry
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Symphoricarpos
Native to North America, this deciduous shrub has white or pink berries that contrast beautifully against the bare branches in winter. It’s a tough plant that can handle drought, poor soil, and heat. It’s also deer-resistant.
5) Viburnum
Photo credit: Jacky Parker Photography – Getty Images
Viburnum spp.
Viburnum is a huge genus of both evergreen and deciduous shrubs. Many of them boast pretty spring flowers, colorful fall foliage, and beautiful red or blue berries, come fall and early winter. Make sure to read the plant description when buying because some become ginormous in the landscape. Many new cultivars stay more compact, maxing out around 5 feet tall and wide. Try ‘Sparkler’ and ‘Glitters & Glows’ for abundant blue-black berries.
Read more: 7 Shrubs for Fall Color in Small Yards
6) Beautyberry
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Callicarpa spp.
This lesser-known shrub deserves a spot in your garden for its understated glamour. With brilliant purple berries that persist into winter, its eye-catching appearance makes it a lovely addition to the winter garden. New cultivars such as ‘Pearl Glam’ have dark purple foliage, too, to add to its year-round beauty. For a Southeastern native garden, choose American beautyberry (Callicarpa americana). Beautyberry does not need a pollinator to set fruit.
Read more: 7 Lesser-Known Shrubs to Plant This Fall
7) Pyracomeles
Photo credit: Proven Winners ColorChoice Shrubs
×Pyracomeles spp.
This new hybrid evergreen (a cross between Pyracantha and Osteomeles) that’s suited for warm climates boasts shiny, finely textured leaves like a boxwood. The variety ‘Berry Box’ produces pretty white flowers in spring, which morph into orange berries in fall, then bright red in winter.
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