Growing berries in the garden is a deliciously fruitful endeavor as long as you’re raising the right ones. Several plants produce berries we don’t want in the garden or the yard that are poisonous, a bit of a bully, or not good for wildlife. Let’s take a look at a few bad berries to avoid.

National Invasive Species Information

Common Buckthorn

Sometimes called European buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), this invasive shrub threatens the habitat of native species while not producing useful fruit for birds or other wildlife. It was brought over as a hedge row species. This makes sense because it is hardy and grows relatively quickly. However, it escaped its initial use and is problematic in many areas of the country. The deep purple berries sometimes look like chokecherries to some people, but notice the difference in the leaves. The berries are inedible to people and birds, so you’ll often notice them persisting throughout the winter.

Just because it’s also called buckthorn, don’t shy away from planting sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides). This is an attractive shrub with silver-gray leaves and delicious fruit that is high in vitamin C. These are terrific hedge row plants that are beneficial for people and wildlife.

Deadly Nightshade

The epitome of a bad berry is deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna), a native that produces this potent and poisonous fruit. Its name says a lot. Atropa is derived from Atropos, the Fate in Greek mythology that cut the life cord of people. Belladonna means “beautiful woman” in Italian. This is for the Renaissance ladies put atropine drops in their eyes to dilate their pupils for beauty purposes.

While we no longer use atropine to look beautiful, it is a 1% solution used to slow myopic progression in children. My son uses it, and his vision has remained stable for over a year! While we want to be careful if we have deadly nightshade around the yard or garden, I have a hard time calling this berry a bad one with such positive uses.

Common Honeysuckle and Its Tatarian Cousin

Common honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) features fragrant, trumpet-shaped flowers that bloom in early summer and produce bright red, squishy berries by the end of the season. While they look appealing, they are not, and the whole vine tends to have an aggressive habit.

Along these lines, Tatarian honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica L.) is a popular landscaping shrub native to Asia. Birds and small mammals consume the berries, which aids in the shrub’s propagation, or rather over-propagation. As with many non-natives, it overruns habitats and changes ecosystems.

Oriental Bittersweet

Growing up in Ohio, we loved making wreaths out of American bittersweet (Celastrus scandens). However, it was quickly being squeezed out by the non-native Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) that took over much of its habit. It was introduced as an ornamental plant because it is eye-catching. It grows so vigorously that it can uproot trees because of its weight.

Along the lines of specimens to avoid, Bradford pears make the list for many people and here is why: What’s So Bad about Bradford Pears? 

While these plants are attractive in their own right, their aggressive nature and often poisonous berries should be avoided.