Ardisia Crenata (Christmas Berry)

[HollyberryLady]

Bought this very unique and interesting shade-loving evergreen plant at the nursery that I had never seen before. It had appealing glossy leathery leaves and gorgeous red berries dangling from the bottom of the little shrub. It reminded me of my beloved holly shrubs so of course I had to have it.

Let me tell you....

It was the best plant purchase I've ever made.

As the berries began to fall after an exceptionally long time, I sowed them in a moist soilless medium. It took two full months, but sure as anything, the seeds began to sprout.

Unfortunately I gave the mother plant to a friend for a gift but I have pictures that I took before I gave it away. I'll have to find them and post them later.

In the meantime, here are my 4 current baby seed-grown plants, growing together in a large pot...

[HollyberryLady]

Ok I found one picture so far of my original mother plant with berries on it. These are the berries that my baby plants above, germinated from. There is one seed inside each berry.

[imafan26]

Yes, the Christmas berries bloom around Christmas time. We use them for wreaths. It is hard to have a pine wreath when it is 80 degrees outside so, we use macadamia nut leaves sprayed green, otherwise they will brown in a week, ferns, ti leaves, and sometimes Spanish moss or lavender to cover the wreath base. Christmas berry, wood rose, Achuete pods-sprayed red, and whatever else we can find that might last.

Christmas berry trees can get quite big, over 40 ft tall.

[HollyberryLady]

This compact shrub is an ideal houseplant for people who don't have a lot of sun to offer. It originally grows on the forest floor so it doesn't require tons of sunshine.

Granted, it can grow 40 feet outdoors, but indoors it will stay much smaller in a pot. It's a slow grower. Regular pruning will shape your tree and keep it the size you desire.

The berries actually start growing in summer and ripen for the fall....and they stay on the plant for many long months at a time. Even until the following late spring/early summer when the plant blooms again!

More pictures soon...