Making it's debut recently ... a new beautyberry, Callicarpa dichomata 'Duet,' developed by the US National Arboretum and Tennessee Technological University.
The plant was discovered in 2000 as a sport of C. dichomata var albofructus by two researchers, Dr. Gary Bachman and Edgar Davis, working at TN Tech in Cookeville, TN. They got in touch with plant breeder Dr. Sandra Reed at the Arboretum's Floral and Nursery Plant Research Unit in McMinnville, TN.
After thorough testing, the plant was released to growers last November for propagation, and it should be available at retail nursery centers next year.
The new plant has medium green leaves with yellow margins, and the late summer berries are white. The rounded shrub will reach 6 feet tall and wide in about four years, and does best in light shade, zones 5-8. According to the Arboretum, the plant so far has not shown any indications that it might potentially be invasive.
'Duet' beautyberry could be used in a shrub border, as a stand-alone specimen, or as a hedge or medium-sized screen. For a list of nurseries that are now propagating this plant, contact [email protected]
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