American Beautyberry

For several years I routinely cut this stubborn bush back to the ground in a half-hearted effort to remove it from the embankment in the back yard. Then one year I was gone for much of the summer and the bush grew unchecked. When I saw the clusters of purple berries and the attraction of many birds I decided that the little bush might have a place there after all.

The bush being indigenous to my part of the country, natives have been using the berries for ages as a clothing dye. Birds feast on them throughout the fall. With selective pruning it keeps a decent shape and size and doesn't become an obstruction.

I like my bush!