Ep 212. Beavers vs. Woodchucks - Barberry Alternatives

Mary Stone shares a humorous story about a neighbor's beaver and woodchuck dilemmas, the differences between the two, and their respective remedies. She then addresses the issue of invasive barberry, suggesting alternatives, emphasizing the importance of native plants, and striking a balance with ornamental plants. 

Mary wraps up with a reflection on the Fourth of July, encouraging listeners to relish and not take for granted our freedom or the magnificence of nature. And to do our part to propagate peace and harmony in our communities.

Thanks for tuning in! 

Related Podcasts and Posts You'll Enjoy: 

Alternatives to Invasive Barberry - Blog Post

Ep 142. Berries for Winter Beauty and Wildlife 

Berries for Winter Beauty and Wildlife - Blog Post

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I'd love to hear your stories about your garden and nature, as well as your thoughts on topics for future podcast episodes. You can email me at AskMaryStone@gmail.com.

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Mary Stone, Columnist & Garden Designer
                                         AskMaryStone.com

More about the Podcast and Column:

Welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries.

It's not only about gardens; it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So, let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.

Thanks for tuning in, Mary Stone
Garden Dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com
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Transcript

Ep 212 Beavers vs. Woodchucks - Barberry Alternatives

Sat, Jul 05, 2025 11:24 AM • 10:46

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

Garden dilemmas, nature inspirations, beaver removal, woodchuck dilemma, barberry alternatives, invasive plants, native plants, wildlife control, Japanese barberry, smoke bush, ninebark, native-ars, Fourth of July, peace and independence, garden design.

SPEAKERS

Mary Stone

Mary Stone  00:00

Mary Stone, Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. I'm Mary Stone, and welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries. It's not only about gardens; it's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learn from Mother Nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So let's jump in, in the spirit of learning from each other, we have lots to talk about.

Mary Stone  00:25

Hello there. It's Mary Stone on the screen porch, and it is steamy today, and I want to thank those of you who reached back after our last chat about the Truth and Tale of Two Country Gardens. It was a little different from our normal shares, but I'm glad that you enjoyed the story. A few asked if the beaver part of the story was actual. Yes, indeed, it was, as was every part of the dialogue and exchange with the homeowners, as well as the butchering of the Hemlock trees. I could see and feel the pain of the trees. As you likely guessed, though, the fiction part of the story was the character of the older man in the ball cap and his possible son, filling in the blanks of the oddity of the couple and the mystery of having side-by-side weekend homes that may go beyond the noisy children of the previous owners. I'm glad you enjoyed this story. Revisiting the beaver dialog with Ernest reminds me of an exchange with a neighbor a decade ago. I thought you'd enjoy as well. And it starts like this. 

Mary Stone  01:25

Help the Woodchuck is eating my trees. Writes Lucia, and he's moved in right next to my front door, where there's a deep hole about a foot in diameter. So I think, do I bake a cake? Bring some wine or what? Who can I call to help him move to the San Diego Zoo? Sincerely crowded in Blairstown. What clever wit Lucia has, who lived across Johnsonburg Creek from me. Hence, her dilemma could also be mine. While they are known to eat a twig or two, the name Woodchuck has nothing to do with wood. It's derived from the Native American word Wejack, Woodshaw, or Woodchoock. Woodchucks, also known as groundhogs, prefer soft plant tissue, such as grasses, vegetables, and leaves, and you better stay out of my garden, groundhog. Actually, I haven't had them here for a while. Knock on wood. I think the coyotes have something to do with it. 

Mary Stone  02:19

My bet is you have a beaver eating the trees and a groundhog living by your front door, quite a party. Woodchucks build remarkable homes with multiple exits and chambers. Beavers, on the other hand, burrow into banks with entrances to their dens underwater. The Beaver, Castor canadensis, is North America's largest rodent and can readily chew and drop trees up to two and a half feet in diameter or more. A beaver will drop a large tree at the edge of the river or creek to begin a dam. Uh oh, we have that, which serves as a foundation and a filter to catch the floating debris that the Beaver will harvest upstream. How clever, huh?

Mary Stone  03:01

There's no spray or device to deter your hefty invaders. And while you can prevent tree gnawing by wrapping chicken wire around the trunk, it's a challenge to do so on 100 trees. Eviction is the only practical way for woodchucks. Have a heart, the trap that is, or don't have a heart. It's up to you and your dog, but please don't tell me about it. There's something about being fuzzy. 

Mary Stone  03:26

Beaver removal is trickier, and you'll likely need a permit, at least you do here in New Jersey, so I suggest leaving it to experts by contacting their New Jersey wildlife control. Or in Pennsylvania, just over the river, there's the Northeast Pennsylvania Game Commission, but check with your local authorities wherever you live. When I called the Northeast Pennsylvania Game Commission, the dispatchers told me that unless beavers are causing flooding, they give the animal the benefit of the doubt. As often beavers move on if they don't like where they are, maybe best to skip the cake. Miss hospitality.

Mary Stone  04:03

And then, you know, in the story of the two country gardens, there was the mystery of the barberry. And indeed, it wasn't running amok there on the two country estates, but it's terribly invasive, as many of you know, and it's hard to get rid of. I have one that was self-seeded in the rock garden before I moved here 25 years ago, and I have been cutting it back every year, over and over, and it still sprouts. I swear it must be rooted to the other side of the Earth. I'm just amazed at how it keeps coming back. Maybe that's another story. How do you get rid of how do you get rid of barberry? Anyway, there is a story about alternatives to barberry that I would like to share, and it starts like this.

Mary Stone  04:45

Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. When I began as a designer, I thought the green, prickly shrubs overtaking forest floors were native plants, which is not the case. It's the maroon leaf Japanese barberry that has been overused in deer-populated areas for years. Though it's understandable why their popularity. They're tough and their deep red foliage offers lovely contrast in the garden, and deer don't eat them. Their slender red berries linger long after the leaves drop, prized for their ornamental value. Leaves of Berberis thunbergii turn green in shade, which is why the invasive bully is not as obvious to identify in the woodland areas. While barberry is not yet banned here in New Jersey, using it in garden designs nowadays feels irresponsible. 

Mary Stone  05:32

It was introduced as a landscape plant in the 1800s, and there are now two species of barberry that plague our forests, the Japanese barberry mentioned previously, as well as the common barberry, Berberis vulgaris, both of these thorny tyrants are on do not plant lists and banned for sale in many states, including our neighbors, New York and Pennsylvania. I'm not quite sure why they're not banned here, but I don't see them often. Thankfully, there are beautiful alternatives to barberry that are gaining popularity, such as the dwarf purple-leaved Weigela, Wine and Roses Midnight Wine, or Fine Wine, which are gorgeous and deer-resistant alternatives. The botanical name is Weigela florida.

Mary Stone  06:17

Substitutes for the larger maroon leaf barberry are the favored smoke bush, Cotinus coggygria, growing 10 to 15 feet, though manageable with pruning. The smoke, like plumes of flowers, gives it its common name. Then there's Eastern Ninebark. Diablo is my favorite, growing four to eight feet or more, though you can maintain its size as well. To avoid losing the white, fluffy flowers, prune it right after the blooms fade as it blooms on old wood. The straight species of ninebark, which is Berberis thunbergii, is native to the central and eastern portions of the United States, from Minnesota and Colorado to South Carolina, Tennessee, Illinois, and Arkansas. It's also found in Canada, but it's the cultivar Diablo that boasts dark maroon leaves, which former barberry lovers will adore. For an alternative to Golden barberry, there's Golden Jackpot Weigela.

Mary Stone  07:13

Of course, there's the Chamaecyparis pisifera 'Aurea Nana'. I have to say that botanically it was something we learned in school when we were learning the botanical names. And I don't know, it's just such a long one, and people love it. It's called Gold mop. And I see this in front of people's houses, and it grows to be a very large shrub. So, folks, prune the Gold Thread Cypress into like meatballs. It's so unattractive, so unattractive. Instead, I suggest you allow the gold threads to stand alone so they can grow into their feathery, full-bodied selves, just like us. We should just grow into who we are, not try to prune ourselves. Right? 

Mary Stone  07:51

The development of sterile barberry plants is underway, and a few have made it to market, such as Sunjoy Mini Maroon Barberry, which grows two to three feet tall and wide. Better yet, while they don't sport maroon leaves, why not replace your invasive barberry with thornless native lovelies such as Virginia sweetspire, Itea virginica, and Winterberry, Ilex verticillata, which we talked about in Episode 142, Berries for Winter Beauty and Wildlife. And then there's the sweet-smelling summer sweet, Clethra alnifolia. Garden dilemmas? AskMaryStone.com

Mary Stone  08:30

Yes, I adore native plants, and I specify them on designs as much as possible, as well as their cultivars, often called native-ars. But I'm not adverse to ornamental plants, as long as they aren't invasive or harmful, and I encourage clients to aim for a 70% Native to 30% ornamental ratio and have less lawns, which brings me to a bit of reflection. As I am recording this podcast, we are on the cusp of the Fourth of July. How fortunate we are to live where many languages are spoken, where we can choose a religion or no religion, and where we can have faith.

Mary Stone  09:07

As we celebrate the Fourth of July, commemorating the day the fathers of our country signed the Declaration of Independence, let us not forget or take for granted our freedoms, our choices, and the beauty of the world around us. Let us embrace our differences in the spirit of recognizing that we are all the same, seeking happiness and peace, and caring for our families. It's all about love. Happy birthday, United States of America. May we all strive to propagate peace. It starts at home and in our communities.

Mary Stone  09:41

Thank you so much for visiting with me. It really means a lot, and I hope you've enjoyed it as well. And if so, please share the podcast with a friend or two so that more can join us in learning and growing in the garden of life. Be sure to get out amongst nature, even if you live in a city, because there are always birds singing or squirrels romping. We enjoy every bit of nature because we are fortunate to have it. It's something to love and adore, indeed, and not take for granted, same as our peace and independence. See you next time on the screen porch.

Mary Stone  10:15

 You can follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook or online at GardenDilemmas.com and on Instagram at hashtag. Mary Elaine Stone. Garden Dilemmas, Delights and Discoveries is produced by Alex Bartling. Thanks for coming by. I look forward to chatting again from my screen porch, and always remember to embrace the unexpected in this garden of life. Have a great day.