Aronia arbutifolia 'Brilliantissima' Brookgreen Gardens callicarpenal worked at roughly 79

callicarpenal worked at roughly 79 percent the strength of DEET

The reddish-brown bark peels in long fibrous strips down a straight

and the samaras ripen red as well before fading to brownish yellow in late summer

which is exactly why generations of country children have dared each other to try

Aronia arbutifolia 'Brilliantissima' Brookgreen Gardens callicarpenal worked at roughly 79Aronia arbutifolia has grown in the wet woods and pocosins of the eastern United States for a very long time, largely unbothered by the horticultural world's attention. 'Brilliantissima' changed that. Selected for foliage with a deeper gloss and berries of a more saturated, almost lacquered red than the straight species, this is the form that finally made gardeners look twice at a native shrub long overlooked despite centuries of quiet usefulness. The