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Nurseries & Gardens

Photo by Fritz Geller-Grimm

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Buy Ruscus aculeatus

Also Known As

Butcher's Broom
Christmas Berry Butcher's Broom

Plant type

shrub

size

H: 2'-40"
W: 40"

planting zones

7a-10b

1 gallon | $39

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Fewer than 29 at Forestfarm

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Ruscus aculeatus plant details

Ruscus aculeatus is a broadleaf evergreen shrub with green foliage. In spring green and white flowers emerge followed by red fruit. Grows well with sun - shade and low water. Adapts to various soil conditions. Does well in well-drained soil. A good option if you're seeking something verticillium wilt resistant.

CHARACTERISTICS OF Ruscus aculeatus

Plant type: shrub
Plant family: asparagaceae
Foliage: evergreen green
Mature size: 40 IN wide, 2 FT - 40 IN - tall
Flowers: green and white blooms in spring
Uses: winter interest

GROWING CONDITIONS for Ruscus aculeatus

USDA Zones: 7a - 10b
Sun exposure: sun - shade
Watering frequency: low
Resistant to: verticillium wilt
Soil needs: well-drained

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Nursery contributed plant descriptions

The name 'Butcher's Broom' given to this this strange Lily relative perhaps best describes its 2-4' box-like stems clad in sharply pointed 'leaves', interesting tiny pale-green flowers in spring become glossy red fruits on female plants (if pollinated) which ripen in late summer and persist into winter; an excellent security plant and an evergreen tolerant of poor conditions; our plants our unsexed seedlings. S-PSh/M-D

By: Forestfarm

Butcher's Broom thrives in those dark shady places where few other plants grow. It's evergreen foliage is the biggest attraction but cherry red berries also appear in fall and persist until spring. The plant grows into a 2-3' tall mound and slowly spreads from suckers.

By: Fantastic Plants

Deep green thick leaves are held on upright to arching stems. A very tough evergreen rhizomatous perennial forming dense clumps. Tiny flowers are borne from the center of the leaves and are followed by red berries on female plants.

By: Almost Eden

From Iran, England & the Mediterranean and a few other adjacent countries comes this strange poet's laurel relative. The mature, upright clumps to Our favorite horticulture humorist, Tony Avent, says it, "resembles a short-haired green porcupine after a close encounter with an tractor-trailer." Takes about the worst possible growing conditions. Beautiful red berries, as large as cherries, in September, remain all winter on prickly evergreen foliage. Oddly enough, a member of the Lily family.