As well as adding a beautiful touch to the garden with structure, ornamental detail and colour, trees with berries offer plenty of attractions for wildlife too.
Planting a tree with berries will provide birds with a place to roost and plenty to feast on, plus give you the pleasure of watching the birds in action too. Berry- and fruit-bearing trees also provide food for a range of insects and animals. Mice, hedgehogs, badgers, squirrels and foxes will all happily feed on them.
Whether you're searching for evergreen shrubs or trees with berries or a compact option for smaller plots, there are plenty to choose from. Varieties of tree like rowan, holly, spindle and hawthorn are especially good for attracting flocks of birds and the berries are gorgeous to look at too.
1. Wild cherry
In spring this is one of the best flowering trees as it's covered in white blossom to brighten up and beautify any garden. Then later in the year, the wild cherry (also known as the bird cherry) has lots of small, bright red cherries that are absolutely loved by birds of all varieties.
Autumn leaf colour includes spectacular shades of red, yellow and orange. The colour of the ripe fruit is quite variable on different trees, and can be yellow, scarlet or so dark red it almost looks black. The cherries are loved by blackbirds and thrushes, as well as badgers, squirrels and mice.
Wild cherry trees are quick growing, reaching 8m in 10 years. Young trees tend to be upright, but as the tree starts to mature it develops a more spreading habit.
Cherry trees are tolerant of most garden soil types, but need to be planted in full sun to encourage flowering and fruiting.
2. Crab apple
As one of the best trees for small gardens, versatile crab apple trees are so easy to grow you'll wonder why you never planted one before. They make a beautiful ornamental addition to any garden, with a dramatic display of flowers in spring and fabulous foliage in summer.
They're good pollinators too as they produce blossom for a long period of time. Crab apples also have heavy crops of fruit in autumn and winter that birds love.
They benefit from being planted in full sun. Planting them in a sheltered spot also helps them put greater resources into flowering.
The majority of crab apples grow into medium-sized trees, typically reaching an eventual height of about 3-4m tall.
Offering stunning blossom in spring and dark red fruits in autumn that can be made into crab apple jelly, this mature tree will eventually grow to a height and spread of around four metres.
3. Holly
Holly trees offer you the flexibility of choosing a large or small tree depending on the size of your outdoor space. As well as bigger trees, they come as smaller versions you can clip into small rounded shapes.
In winter, the holly tree is a reliable choice with its glossy green foliage and bright red berries. There are many different types of holly tree to choose from and the berries provide food for a range of birds. As it's evergreen, it can be one of the best trees for privacy too.
Hollies are easy to grow in sun or partial shade, and prefer moist but well-drained soil. The variegated varieties keep their colours better in full sun. They don’t need much pruning either. They can grow as tall as 15m but are generally around 8-12m tall.
This variety of holly bush is self-fertile, so you won't need to plant it near a male holly bush to get the fruit. It has bright berries and will do best in moist, well-drained soil. It grows to a height of around six metres so is good for smaller gardens.
4. Spindle
This small tree (also known as Euonymus europaeus) is a delight in the autumn and winter garden. It has large oval mid-green leaves that turn crimson in autumn, star-shaped green flowers in late spring, and masses of crimson-pink fruit in winter that split to reveal orange seeds.
The wood was traditionally used for making spindles, hence the name. It really comes into its own in winter gardens, when it's covered in clusters of gorgeous, orange-pink berries that remain long after the blazing scarlet leaves have fallen. It will grow to an eventual height of around 2.5-4m.
The spindle tree enjoys a position in full sun or partial shade, in any well-drained soil. It looks stunning in winter underplanted with early spring bulbs. Wildlife loves its leaves and fruit, especially robins, so it’s one of the best trees with berries if you want to give a boost to biodiversity in your garden.
This has dark green leaves that turn scarlet, as well as summer flowers followed by orange-pink berries. Although it will grow in partial shade, plant in full sun to enjoy its stunning autumn colours in full.
5. Hawthorn
The glossy deep red berries of hawthorn are the star of the show in autumn and winter, while in spring it’s covered in a mass of flowers. The berries are popular with birds like starlings, finches, blue tits and thrushes, who love tucking in to them. When the trees grow bigger they also have wonderfully gnarled trunks.
Hawthorns are ideal for small gardens as they grow anything from 4.5-9m tall, which makes them the perfect size for urban spaces. They grow in any soil, in sun or partial shade, and need little maintenance.
They are a good choice if you're interested in sustainable gardens too as where there are hawthorns wildlife inevitably follows. Birds will hoover up the berries so they attract wildlife to your garden in addition to looking good.
For one of the best small trees with berries around, Crataegus orientalis is an especially ornate variety of hawthorn. It has a pleasing round-shaped crown and is laden with large orange haws.
6. Cotoneaster
As well as being a popular garden shrub there are larger varieties of cotoneaster that grow into trees. These form a rounded to wide-spreading head of slender branches with long, narrow, dark green leaves and prolific white flowers in spring, followed by red, orange or yellow berries that stay on the tree right through winter and are much-loved by wildlife.
Cotoneaster trees grow to a height of around 8m. Best planted in full sun and well-drained soil, they tolerate cooler and drier climates, and require very little attention once established.
This evergreen cotoneaster is supplied in a 12 litre container at 220-250cm tall. It is low maintenance and will grow best in well-drained soil in either full sun or light shade.
7. Rowan
Rowans are one of the prettiest trees with berries. Also known as mountain ash and Sorbus aucuparia, rowans are easy-to-grow trees that do best on well-drained, fertile soil, and don’t like clay or waterlogged conditions. They prefer an open sunny site, but can handle some shade and generally aren’t that fussy.
Rowans grow to an eventual height of around 6m. The berries start to appear from July to November, depending on which variety you choose, and they last well into the winter months.
Blackbirds, thrushes and starlings love feasting on gorgeous rowan berries, making it a great way of attracting birds to your garden in winter.
Growing to an eventual height of around six metres, this variety has cream flowers in spring and bunches of red berries in autumn and winter. A good choice for both urban and coastal locations.
8. Juniper
Juniper is a popular ornamental tree for its long-season interest, ability to grow in most regions, and carefree nature. With shapes ranging from ground-hugging bushes to much larger trees, there’s one to suit every garden.
Juniper berries are a food source for songbirds and other wildlife, keeping them sustained in winter. The plant’s dense branches shield birds from cold winds and protect their nesting sites.
Female plants will not fruit unless a male plant is nearby. Female cones develop a fleshy berry-like appearance, starting out green and maturing to blue, while male ones resemble miniature pine cones.
Tolerant of most soils, junipers prefer slightly acidic, organically rich soil with good drainage. They need little to no pruning to keep their natural shape. In early spring, cut out any dead branches, trim back wayward growth and lightly shape.
9. Winterberry
This deciduous tree is multi-stemmed, with an upright, rounded growth habit. It has clusters of greenish-white flowers in early summer and cherry-red berries from autumn through winter.
It’s actually a type of holly (Ilex verticillata) that’s loved by birds for its brilliant red berries.
Winterberry shrubs have leathery dark, green leaves that turn yellow and purple in autumn. They like growing in wet soil, prefer full sun or part shade.
Ilex verticillata is available from Gardening Express.
10. Elderberry
One of the best bird attracting plants, elderberry is a fantastic choice for your garden. This deciduous tree grows up to 4m tall depending on variety, and produces clumps of berries in late summer to early autumn, which act as a bird magnet.
The shrubby nature of elderberry foliage also makes it a suitable nesting spot for some birds. Due to its manageable size and ability to attract birds elderberry is a must if you're keen on boosting the wildlife in your garden.
Also known as sambucus, this beautiful shrub features long, arching branches. In early summer, it has clusters of flat white flowers that turn into the purple berries that birds love in autumn.
This tree is good if the soil in your garden tends to get waterlogged because it thrives in damp conditions.
FAQs
How do trees with berries benefit birds and wildlife?
Berries are an important food source for many birds in winter, especially when the ground is too frozen for them to hunt worms or snails, and there are few insects about to forage for.
If you can attract birds by planting trees with berries you will be doing your bit to help. "Some birds, like song and mistle thrushes, blackbirds, redwings and fieldfares, find most of their winter food from berries," say the experts at the RSPB.
Most berries are either red or black. This makes the berries easier for birds to find them. "Evergreens, and plants that produce berries when their leaves are still green, generally produce red berries, which show up well against a green background," explain the experts at the RSPB. "Black berries are thought to show up better against leaves that have turned yellow or brown."
What kind of tree has little red berries?
- Firethorn Also known as pyracantha, these red berries grow in such dense clusters that the tree can actually appear to be red when you see it from a distance. Pyracantha Saphyr Rouge ('Cadrou') is available from Crocus.
- Barberry These oval-shaped berries grow on thorny bushes and hang from the twigs like pretty ornaments.
- Holly One of the most popular decorative trees around, their small, bright red berries are synonymous with Christmas.
- Red elderberry The red coastal elderberry (Sambucus callicarpa) blooms in spring before producing small red berries from summer right through winter.
Trees with red berries are a common sight in autumn and winter and the perfect way to add colour, texture and interest to your garden during the colder months.
If you want to get prepared for the cooler weather ahead, our guide to getting your garden ready for winter is a great place to start.
The original version of this article previously appeared on Gardeningetc, a sister website to Homebuilding & Renovating.
