Green flowers in summer then, “conspicuous in winter when covered with its grayish white fruits which stay on the branches until spring.” Bailey “The leaves turn a fine brown-purple in the fall, but the berries are the thing – pewter in color, with a texture like those Fourth of July sparklers of childhood memory, they have a delicious fragrance.” Allen Lacy.
Size: 9’ x 10’ Care: sun in any soil Native: Canada to Southeastern U.S. No pruning needed but can be pruned at any time of year, if desired. Wildlife Value: Berries relished by chickadees, red-bellied woodpeckers, swallows, Titmouse, catbirds, bluebirds, Northern flicker & yellow-rumped warblers. Bayberry thickets also provide nesting sites for songbirds, offering excellent protection from predators. Size: Fragrant leaves used for potpourri, abundant berries used to make candles. Good road-side plant, salt tolerant.
Probably 1st collected for gardens by John Bartram (1699-1776). Offered for sale in Bartram Garden’s 1783 Broadside, America’s 1st plant catalog. In 1800’s considered “very ornamental in the shrubbery.”
**LISTED AS OUT OF STOCK BECAUSE WE DO NOT SHIP THIS ITEM. IT IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE AT OUR RETAIL LOCATION.
Silene dioica Red Campion Z 5-8
Dark pink-purple flowers from late spring to mid-summer
Dark pink-purple flowers from late spring to mid-summer
Size: 32” x 18” Care: full sun to part shade in moist well-drained soil Native: Europe
In Greek mythology Silene was a companion of Bacchus who was covered with foam. Dioicus means that male and female plants are separate. Grown in American gardens since 1800’s.