How often to water silverberry in California
In July in the Central Valley, established silverberry in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 8.8 gallons each time for a plant 4 feet across, about 3.0 gallons a week. Silverberry is a fast-growing, thorny evergreen shrub from China and Japan that can reach 10 to 15 feet tall and as wide or wider. Its wavy leaves are glossy green above and silvery below, dotted with tiny brown scales. Small, intensely fragrant flowers open in fall. Outside the deserts, established plants handle dry spells well, but they should not sit in wet, poorly drained soil.
How often to water silverberry, month by month
Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.
How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.
How to tell it needs water
- Soil dry 4 to 6 inches down at the edge of a young silverberry's root ball means it is ready for a deep soak
- Fine pale stippling on the leaves in hot, dusty summer weather points to spider mites, which hit water-stressed plants hardest
- Rusty brown dots on the leaves and young stems are natural scales, not disease or drought damage
- Leaves yellowing and dropping while the soil stays soggy can point to poorly drained ground, which this shrub should not have
How to water it
- Water a young silverberry over its root ball and a band of soil beyond it, widening the band as the shrub spreads
- Run water slowly enough that it sinks a foot and a half, then wait for the upper few inches to dry before the next soak
- Give it ground that drains freely and keep it out of low, wet spots, since wet, poorly drained soil does not suit it
- For a silverberry hedge or screen, lay drip line on both sides of the row and keep spray off the foliage
- Mulch the root zone with wood chips, keeping them clear of the thorny stems at the base
Through the seasons
Water a new silverberry deeply through its first summer and widen the wet area as its roots spread. Outside the deserts, established plants are drought tolerant and need only occasional deep soaks. The shrub is evergreen, flowers in late fall and ripens its fruit the next spring. Summer is the key season, because spider mites peak from June through September and water stress makes their damage worse. Winter rain covers the cool months on the coast and in the Central Valley, while desert soil needs checks through long dry winter spells. WUCOLS rates silverberry low water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley, on the south coast and in South Inland. It rates moderate water in the high desert and the low desert.
In pots
Silverberry grows fast to a large shrub, so a container suits only a young plant or a hard-clipped specimen. Use a large pot with open drainage holes and a well-drained mix. In summer, check the mix 2 inches down every few days, and more often in desert heat, watering once it is dry there. Let the excess run out, then empty the saucer so the roots never sit wet. Wear gloves when you handle it, because the branches carry sharp spines. In winter, water only after the mix has dried.
- A year
- 6.84 gal per sq ft
- Reference
- Sacramento climate table
- Counts
- Plant need, before sprinkler losses
Monthly water need by climate zone
Silverberry: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone
| Month | N. Coast | C. Valley | S. Coast | S. Inland | Hi Desert | Lo Desert |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0.15 | 0.16 | 0.31 | 0.31 | 0.74 | 0.78 |
| Feb | 0.21 | 0.26 | 0.32 | 0.35 | 0.93 | 0.93 |
| Mar | 0.35 | 0.43 | 0.46 | 0.52 | 1.46 | 1.52 |
| Apr | 0.47 | 0.61 | 0.56 | 0.64 | 1.89 | 1.95 |
| May | 0.58 | 0.83 | 0.64 | 0.78 | 2.39 | 2.45 |
| Jun | 0.64 | 0.99 | 0.69 | 0.92 | 2.85 | 2.79 |
| Jul | 0.64 | 1.07 | 0.79 | 1 | 3.04 | 2.85 |
| Aug | 0.6 | 0.95 | 0.74 | 0.93 | 2.79 | 2.6 |
| Sep | 0.5 | 0.72 | 0.6 | 0.74 | 2.14 | 2.08 |
| Oct | 0.35 | 0.47 | 0.46 | 0.53 | 1.46 | 1.49 |
| Nov | 0.19 | 0.22 | 0.33 | 0.36 | 0.93 | 0.96 |
| Dec | 0.12 | 0.14 | 0.26 | 0.27 | 0.65 | 0.68 |
| Year | 4.8 | 6.84 | 6.2 | 7.37 | 21.27 | 21.08 |
How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.
Plants with the same water needs 16
Rated low water in the Central Valley, like silverberry. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.
LavenderLavandula spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
RosemaryRosmarinus officinalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
BougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Olive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Crape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
LantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
SalviaSalvia greggii ssp., cvs. & hybridslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
AloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
SucculentsEcheveria spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
JunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Russian SagePerovskia spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
SagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Wild PrivetLigustrum vulgarelow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
CoralberrySymphoricarpos orbiculatus (SHADE)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Sydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Blue Leaf WattleAcacia salignalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTurn this into minutes on your water days
Every city page has a calculator that takes silverberry, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.
Questions people ask
How often should I water silverberry in summer?
In July, established silverberry in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley, about every 27 days on the south coast and about every 22 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.
How much water does silverberry need per day?
In July in the Central Valley, established silverberry needs about 0.4 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across and about 1.7 gallons a day for a plant 8 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.
Does watering for silverberry change across California?
Yes. WUCOLS rates silverberry separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, low water in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, moderate water in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, moderate water in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.
Is silverberry invasive?
It has escaped into natural areas in the southeastern United States, where birds and other animals spread the seed. It also suckers and can self-seed in the garden. Pull seedlings while they are small, and avoid planting it beside wild land.
Are silverberry fruits edible?
They are technically edible, but they are small and hold a single seed. The reddish brown fruits ripen in spring, from late March into May. Birds eat them, which is how the seed travels.
Can silverberry grow near the beach?
Yes. It is highly salt tolerant and resists salt spray, and it is used as a windbreak. Along the coast, an established plant needs only occasional deep soaks once its roots have spread.
How do I keep silverberry in bounds?
Plan on regular pruning, since this vigorous shrub needs constant cutting where space is limited. Remove the long, whippy shoots that rise from the top before they reach overhead trees, which they can climb into. Next year's flowers form on older growth, so heavy cutting can cost you bloom.
Why are my silverberry leaves speckled?
Fine pale stippling, sometimes with webbing, is a sign of spider mites. They multiply fast in hot weather and do the most damage on water-stressed plants, often in dusty spots. A deep soak during summer drought helps the shrub tolerate them.
Does silverberry grow in shade?
Yes. It grows in sun or shade, though its foliage is thinner in shade. Soil under shade usually stays moist longer, so check it before each soak.
More plant watering guides
Sources
- WUCOLS IV plant water use classification for Elaeagnus pungens, the University of California survey California agencies use for landscape plan reviewRead August 23, 2026 on wucols.ucdavis.edu
- Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance, adopted text and appendices, effective 2025-01-02 · monthly reference evapotranspiration per city, Appendix CRead August 23, 2026 on water.ca.gov/-/media/DWR-Website/Web-Pages/Programs/Water-Use-And-Efficiency/MWELO-Rulemaking/Final-MWELO-Text-and-Appendices_20250103.pdf
- UC Statewide IPM Program, irrigation scheduling using evapotranspirationRead September 30, 2026 on ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/GARDEN/ENVIRON/evap.html
- Shaw and Pittenger, Landscape Irrigation System Evaluation and Management, UC Cooperative Extension, 2009Read September 30, 2026 on ucanr.edu/sites/default/files/2013-02/160836.pdf
- Pittenger, Water Management in Gardens and Landscapes, UC Riverside, 2017Read September 30, 2026 on ucanr.edu/sites/default/files/2017-03/258022.pdf