Myrica pensylvanica / Bayberry

Myrica pensylvanica is a wonderfully diverse shrub that provides year-round interest in your landscape. Tolerant of many growing conditions, Bayberry can be grown in moist to dry soil, full sun to shade, and clay to sandy soils. It is naturally found growing along coastal areas and rocky ledges in partial shade. With more sun, this shrub develops a nice, dense structure that can be easily pruned into hedges; and, being salt tolerant and semi evergreen, it makes a perfect screen along driveways and road fronts. This plant is dioecious, meaning each plant has either male or female parts, so be sure to plant one male and one female in order to produce the small, waxy, grey/blue berries. Flowers are discrete, but can still be found lining the branches late spring-summer. 

In Beacon, NY, the foliage is semi-evergreen, meaning it hangs on for much (if not all) of the winter and turns a rusty golden color before eventually dropping to make way for new leaves. Grows 5 to 15 feet tall (often shorter) with a 5 to 10 foot spread in zone 3-7. 

The leaves have a strong aromatic scent when crushed similar to bay leaf; it is known to have culinary uses as well.