Coralberries

Good Food and Cover

Coralberry, Indian Current – Symphoricarpos orbiculatus 
Snowberry – S. albus

Form

 
Low shrub 2 to 4 feet tall. 

Bark and Twigs 

Branches erect or ascending, purplish, finely hairy, papery bark 

Leaves

 
Deciduous, opposite, simple, oval, smooth margined, often soft hairy beneath, 1 to 2 inches long. 

Flowers

 
Denise clusters in axils of the leaves, bell-shaped small (1/5 inch long or less), July. 
Coralberry- Green to Purple 
Snowberry – Pink or white 

Fruit

Coralberry – Oval-round berries, purplish-red, 1/5 long, September into winter. 
Snowberry – Small oval white, shiny berries. 

WV Range 

Although native species these plants have been put under cultivation and have escaped and may be found in all counties; they had a more restricted range previously. 

Wildlife Use

 
Songbirds and game birds. Pine and evening grosbeaks, brown thrasher, robins, towhees, grouse and pheasants eat the berries. The dense thickets provide excellent nest sites and songbirds. The flowers are frequently used by butterflies and moths. 

Horticulture

Uses Large scale ground cover. 
Light: Partial to full sun. 
Soil Moisture: Moist tending toward dry. 
Soil pH: Neutral to acid. 
Problems: Heavy pruning to renew growth through sprouting usually controls several types of fungi that infect coralberries. 

Compiled By: Brian McDonald, botanist, coordinator Natural Heritage Program, West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, Elkins, West Virginia. 

Written by West Virginia Native Plant Society members and jointly published with the WV Wildlife Diversity Program.