CHICAGOLAND GROWS®, INC.

Plant Introduction Program - Plant Release Bulletin #22

Chicagoland Grows® is a nonprofit corporationof the Chicago Botanic Garden, The MortonArboretum and the Ornamental GrowersAssociation of Northern Illinois (OGA).

Iroquois Beauty™ Black ChokeberryAronia melanocarpa ‘Morton’Iroquois Beauty™

This superior chokeberry was selected for its unique, compact habit and its four seasons of interest: clusters of white springtime flowers, glossy greenfoliage, striking fall color and blue-black berries favored by wildlife.

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For more information about Chicagoland Grows®, contact the Plant Introduction Department, Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Road, Glencoe, IL 60022, (847) 835-8301 or visit www.chicagobotanic.org

Chicagoland Grows® is a nonprofit corporation of the Chicago Botanic Garden, The Morton Arboretum and the Ornamental Growers Association of Northern Illinois (OGA).

The Chicagoland Grows® Plant Introduction Program is dedicated to the evaluation, selection, production and marketing of recommended and new plant cultivars. Plants selected for the program have proven to be adaptable to

the Midwest and are made available to the commercial and retail landscape industry through an international network of growers and propagators.

Iroquois Beauty™ Black ChokeberryAronia melanocarpa ‘Morton’

Botanical NameAronia melanocarpa ‘Morton’

Common NameIroquois Beauty™ black chokeberry

FamilyRosaceae

OriginAronia melanocarpa is a deciduous shrub found sporadicallythroughout the northeastern United States and adjacentsouthern Canada. It is an adaptable species found growingin low, wet areas as well as dry, sandy hillsides. In theMidwest it commonly occurs in soils with low fertility.Iroquois BeautyTM is a selection from the collections at The Morton Arboretum, Lisle, Illinois. It originated fromseed collected in a bog habitat in Kane County, Illinois.

HardinessU.S.D.A. Zones 3-8

Bloom SeasonIroquois Beauty™ blooms mid-May in northern Illinois(U.S.D.A. Zone 5).

General Description and HabitIroquois Beauty™ is a multi-stemmed, deciduous shrubselected for its unique compact, non-leggy habit, showy display of small white flower clusters, glossy foliage, abundant production of black fruit, and attractive orange to deep red fall foliage. It establishes quickly and slowlyforms colonies via root suckers.

SizeTen-year-old plants are less than 3-feet high with a 5-footspread.

Growth RateSlow to medium

Ornamental CharacteristicsFlowers: Showy 2-inch-wide clusters of small white flowers are produced in early to mid-May. The flowers resemble othermembers of the rose family such as several Cotoneaster speciesand Pyracantha coccinea.

Foliage: Lustrous dark green foliage remains clean and disease-free all summer, turning an attractive orange to deep redin fall. Best fall color develops on plants sited in full sunlight.

Fruit: Black to purplish-black, 1/3-inch berrylike fruits areborne in slightly pendulous clusters. The fruit can persistuntil late fall/early winter, although native birds can consume the majority of the fruit earlier.

CultureIroquois BeautyTM is easily grown and is adaptable to a widerange of conditions – sun to partial shade and wet to dry soilconditions. Best flowering, fruiting and fall color occur insunnier locations.

Pest and Disease ProblemsNo serious insect or disease problems are known.

Landscape ValueThe compact form and relatively small size of IroquoisBeauty™ make it suitable for a number of landscape uses. It blends effectively in a foundation planting as well as in ashrub border. The small scale makes it useful in transitioningbetween perennials to larger-scale shrubs. It blends extremelywell in the naturalistic landscape or woodland garden. Thefruit is a good food source for wildlife.

PropagationClonal propagation is required as plants propagated from seedare not true to type. Propagation techniques includes shootand root cuttings or divisions.

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