The Eye-Catching Red Berry-Filled Ground Cover That'll Thrive In Your Container Garden

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If you're looking for new container garden ideas, consider American wintergreen (Gaultheria procumbens). This hardy, low-growing shrub produces white or pink spring blooms followed by red berries and purplish evergreen foliage in winter. Since it requires slightly acidic soil with plenty of shade, wintergreen is often grown in wooded areas, but it's not invasive despite spreading by rhizomes. It also performs incredibly well in container gardens, looking vibrant and festive throughout the year.

Since Gaultheria rarely gets over 6 inches tall, it makes a beautiful perennial ground cover that'll thrive when planted in early fall. It's native to Eastern North America and does well in Hardiness Zones 3 to 9. Although you can leave wintergreen outside all year long, even in containers, many people choose to keep it indoors over the holidays to showcase its festive red berries. Whether you leave it indoors or outside, it pairs well with seasonal accents to create a cheerful holiday display.

Wintergreen offers more than showy fall foliage and persistent berries, however. Many species of wildlife are attracted to this hardy evergreen, and including it in your landscape is a good way to get birds to flock to your yard. Though wintergreen can be grown as ground cover to attract wildlife from squirrels to bears, container planting lets you enjoy its red berries up close without sharing.

It's easy to create a stunning backyard patio upgrade with a simple pot of wintergreen. To plant it in a container, start by choosing a durable pot with a wide opening. If you plan to keep it outdoors year-round, choose a container that can withstand winter freeze-thaw cycles without cracking. Add enough Gaultheria plants to fill the pot, spacing them close together for a lush, full appearance. Wintergreen does best with a soil pH between 4.5 and 6.0, so choose an acidic potting mix such as Coast of Maine Planting Soil.

Available from both online and local nurseries, wintergreen is easy to source for container or woodland gardens. However, it's important not to confuse them with another plant, commonly called wintergreen boxwood or winterberry, which also has red berries. Wintergreen boxwood belongs to the Ilex genus, a holly relative, and grows much taller than Gaultheria. By contrast, true wintergreen is in the same family as rhododendrons, blueberries, and heather.

Layering wintergreen with decorative elements creates a cheerful focal point in outdoor containers through fall and winter. Stack it next to mums, decorate it with moss and pinecones, or add fun holiday decor to catch the eyes of anyone who visits your porch or patio during the holidays.