Plant Type

Shrub

 

Height Range

3-6'

 

Flower Color

White

 

Flower Season

Spring

 

Leaf Color

Dark Green

 

Bark Color

Brown

 

Fruit Color

Black

 

Fruit Season

Winter, Fall

Sun

Full, Half

 

Water

Low, Medium

 

Growth Rate

Moderate, Slow

 

Soil Type

Sandy, Clay, Loam, Rocky, Unparticular

 

Soil Condition

Average, Rich, Poor, Well-drained, Dry

 

Soil pH

Acid, Neutral, Basic

 

Adverse Factors

Invasive

Design Styles

Meadow, Mediterranean, Ranch, Woodland

 

Accenting Features

Fall Color, Showy Flowers

 

Seasonal Interest

Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall

 

Location Uses

Entry, Shrub Border, Foundation

 

Special Uses

Cut Flowers, Hedge, Mass Planting, Small Spaces

 

Attracts Wildlife

Birds

Black chokeberry is a tough, deciduous shrub, growing about 3 to 6 feet tall and wide, with a rounded vase shape. Clusters of white flowers appear in May, and are followed by berries that ripen to blue-black in early autumn, persisting into winter. The fruit is so bountious that the branches become pendulous under their weight. Leaves are a glossy, dark green, turning a brilliant orange to scarlet in the fall. Berries are edible, though bitter, but make a healthy juice, and are used in jams and jellies. The birds even find them bitter, leaving them alone until after the first frosts, which sweeten the fruit up a bit. This is a fabulous, adaptive, unexplainably under-utilized shrub. Use for hedges, foundations, or to add color to the shrub border. A tougher and more adaptive alternative to burning bush for fall color. There are some planted at our pump station on 70th South, just below Wasatch Drive.

Grow in well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. Tolerant of wide range of soils, including both dry and boggy soils. Best fruit production occurs in full sun. Spreads by root suckers to form colonies, though it does so slowly and is not aggressive. Rarely requires pruning; selectively remove branches to control height (see Guides).