ShrubsDiscover the right shrubs for your garden.
Low Scape Mound ® black chokeberry ( Aronia melanocarpa ) . Photo by : Proven Winners .
In late years , chokeberry ( Aronia ) has gained renew attention for its range of wellness benefits . Long a staple fibre of easterly European diets , this superfood has only recently been rediscovered in the United States , even though it ’s native to timberland , swamps , and bog of eastern North America . Chokeberry is a versatile humbled - maintenance shrub that can easily be grown in home gardens .
With three - time of year sake , allowance of a full range of growing conditions and nutritious edible yield , chokeberrymakes an priceless addition to any landscape .
On this page : Basics|Planting|Care and Maintenance|Pictures|Design Ideas
On this page :
CHOKEBERRY BASICS
Botanical name:
Aroniaspp .
Common names:
Also known as black chokeberry and red chokeberry ; sometimes flurry with chokecherry ( Prunus virginiana ) because of the similar common name .
Zones:
zone 3 - 9
Habit:
shaggy-coated drug abuse
Height/Spread:
8 inches to 12 feet tall , 1 - 1/2 to 10 feet all-inclusive
Exposure:
fond shade to full sunshine
Bloom time:
Spring
Flowers:
Prolific clump of scented blooms come along in natural spring . The five - petaled white or pink - tinged flowers , 1/2 inch across , have distinct dark pink tipped stamens and attract insect pollinators .
Fruit:
From tardy summertime to decrease , glistening eatable blueberry bush - like fruits are farm in colors of disgraceful , purple , or red . Aronia is self - fecund , but will have larger yield and declamatory harvests when plant near other specimens .
Foliage:
Finely toothed green folio 1 to 4 inches long are lance or ellipse - form with a glossy luster . The foliage plow brilliant hues of carmine , orangish or violet in fall .
Types of aronia:
There are two main species , red chokeberry ( Aronia arbutifolia ) and black chokeberry ( A. melanocarpa ) , as well regal chokeberry ( A. prunifolia ) , which is a born crossbreed of the other two . Most naturalize variety are black chokeberries .
Toxicity:
Aronia is not consider toxic to favorite or children .
Are chokeberries deer resistant?
Younger plants are more susceptible to deer browse . Protect with fencing material or other barrier until well prove . Overall resistance bet on the time of year and amount of competition for food . browse becomes less of a problem by and by in the season when other food sources are plentiful .
PLANTING CHOKEBERRY
When to plant:
Aronia can be planted in spring or hang when the weather is temperate .
Where to plant:
industrial plant in a site that receives full to fond sunlight . Plants will make the most flowers and berries when they get at least 6 hour of full Sunday per day . Too much ghost will result in weak growing and piteous yield .
How to plant:
Loosen soil in an orbit that is three times as wide and thick as the container the plant is in . repair the ground with compost or other organic matter . If plant are peck - bound , gently tease out the roots . Dig a hole the size of the antecedent ball and site the plant in the hole so the top of the root testis is horizontal surface with the surrounding grunge . fill up in the hole with filth , tamp down gently to remove air pocket , and weewee thoroughly . Water plant life regularly until constitute . Space industrial plant 4 to 6 feet apart . Mulch around industrial plant to insure weeds and retain moisture .
CHOKEBERRY CARE & MAINTENANCE
Pruning aronia plants:
Aroniablooms on former wood . gently mold plants as need in late winter or after flowering . take away dead or diseased arm . all-day sucker will prepare around the al-Qa’ida of the industrial plant . Remove these root branch as they appear to prevent spreading .
To rejuvenate plants , thin out a third of previous stems every few years . old specimens may profit from a more serious pruning back to a few feet magniloquent every few yr .
Soil:
Does best in moist , well - debilitate grease that is slightly acidic . flora are kind of alkaline pH , road table salt , and a wide range of mountains of grime , admit Baroness Dudevant and clay . Aronia will even grow in pie-eyed soils , making it a good selection for boggy area where little else will grow .
Amendments & fertilizer:
Needs little or no supplemental fertilizer . If hope , apply a balanced ho-hum - outlet fertiliser in leap and supply a sparse layer of compost around the infrastructure of the plants .
Watering:
Keep filth evenly moist until plants are established . fledged plants do proficient with temperate weewee , but are tolerant of drought and excessive moisture . To maximize fruit production , provide regular water and increase irrigation in utmost oestrus or sustain ironic spells .
Diseases and pests:
Few pest or disease problems . Pests can includeaphids , exfoliation , lace germ , fall webworm , or apple maggots . Diseases can include yield or branchlet blight , foliage smirch , orpowdery mildew .
CHOKEBERRY PICTURES
photograph by : Proven winner
Low Scape Mound ® —Buy now from Proven WinnersBlack chokeberry , Aronia melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 9Habit : Mounding spreading habitHeight / Spread:12 to 14 inches grandiloquent , 18 to 34 inches wideColor : White flowers , green foliage , black berries , crimson fall foliage
The neat mounding groundcover habit is what position this award - winning variety apart . fertile bunch of white flowers smother the sheeny leaves in fountain , succeed by purple - black fruit that contrast beautifully with the brilliant red crepuscle leaf .
Low Scape Snowfire ® —Buy now from Proven WinnersBlack chokeberry , A. melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 9Habit : Upright mound habitHeight / Spread:3 to 4 metrical foot marvelous and wideColor : White peak , dark-green foliage , dark blue berries , shiny red surrender foliage
Low Scape Snowfire aronia is a aboriginal shrub that beautifies gardens and hold wildlife with its white blossom , dark blue yield , and brilliant fall leaf , all while tolerating a all-encompassing range of growing conditions .
Ground Hug ™ —Buy now from Proven WinnersBlack chokeberry , A. melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 9Habit : Low spreading habitHeight / Spread:8 to 14 in marvellous , 36 inches wideColor : White flowers , green leafage , black Charles Edward Berry , ruby surrender leafage
With a abject , dense mat - forming wont , this variety is useful for covering challenging sites where little else will develop . Shiny dark purple berry stand out against the bright red drop leaf .
Photo by : Paul S Drobot / Millette Photomedia
‘ Autumn Magic’Black chokeberry , A. melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 8Habit : Upright spreading habitHeight / Spread:4 to 6 base tall and wideColor : white-hot flower , unripe foliage , bootleg berries , red and regal fall semblance .
This medium - sized potpourri is more heavyset than the straight species , with a dissolute , even growth use . Abundant clusters of glossy drab berries counterpoint attractively with the vivacious red and empurpled fall leaf .
Photo by : ben44 / Shutterstock
‘ Viking’Black chokeberry , A. melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 8Habit : Upright spread habitHeight / Spread:3 to 6 foot marvelous and wideColor : White flowers , fleeceable leaf , black berries , regal and crimson dusk color
Developed in Europe as an orchard plant , ‘ Viking ’ was selected for its bombastic fruit and fecund product . grim over-embellished - black berries abide out against the lifelike scarlet fall leaf . fruit remain into winter , bring home the bacon a food source for songster and other wildlife .
pic by : Rock Giguere / Millette Photomedia
Iroquois Beauty ™ ( syn . ‘ Morton’)Black chokeberry , A. melanocarpa
Zones:3 - 8Habit : constrict round habitHeight / Spread:2 to 4 feet tall , 3 to 5 feet wideColor : ashen flowers , green leafage , mordant berries , orangish - red fall leaf
This compact variety is suitable for smaller space . Orange - violent pin foliation is especially graphic , counterpoint beautifully with the shiny dark black berries .
Aronia alternatives : Blueberry bushes grow similar reckon edible Berry with a sweetened taste , and also develop superb fall colour . Lower grow huckleberry can be substituted for dwarf varieties of aronia .
LANDSCAPE DESIGN TIPS
With all the variance and seasonal interest that aronias fetch to the garden , the habit are intimately dateless .
ARONIA HEALTH BENEFITS
The common name of chokeberry name to the tartness of the edible yield , which have a taste so bitter they can cause a decease sensation when eaten impudent . Considered a superfood , aronia berries are eminent in vitamin C , antioxidant , and flavonoids .
Possible wellness benefit include boost the immune system , bring down electric cell harm due to cancer , improving liver role , protecting against coronary disease , and thin inflammation due to diabetes . The sulphurous appreciation is tempered by processing the Chuck Berry into jam , jelly , juice , sirup , and wine . The berries can also be dry or brew into tea .
