Hi Lisa. I'm on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, and although it is hot and humid here in the summer I think it's a little less torrid than it is down there. Last fall I planted two southern bayberry (Myrica caroliniensis) because they're native here and I knew they'd stand up to the humid heat. Mine are still young but are growing gangbusters. Those that I see growing wild by the side of the road can get to be a good 10'-12' tall and perhaps half to 2/3 as wide. I can't really comment on foliage drop due to lack of experience, although mine have experienced nearly none. We had a mild winter (only a week or so of 10 degrees; rest of the time in the 30s), over all, and mine came through with flying colors, hanging onto their leaves when other evergreens (like my inkberries and baby loblolly pines) suffered from wind burn. I don't plan to prune mine for height, as I want a privacy screen and a wind/dust break (next door neighbor likes to disk his property, creating clouds of dust). I know that they do well on our sandy soils (you mentioned that they grow well near your island home); do you have the infamous Georgia clay at your 1st home? If your drainage is good I imagine that they'll thrive. I think that they're terrific additions to our hedgerow!

Gamekeeper, I purchased 80 native seedlings this Spring from your neck of the woods, through the New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands (see the link below). Not sure if they are unusual, but besides the Myrica pennsylvania I got: Gray Dogwood (Cornus racemosa) Alternate Leaf Dogwood (Cornus alternifolia) Northern Arrowwood (Viburnum recognitum) Nanny berry (Viburnum lentago) American Mountain Ash (Sorbus americana) Virginia Rose (Rosa virginiana) The seedlings were generally about 12-18" tall, with very healthy root systems. Most of them are planted in temporary nursery beds. I haven't had any losses! But I am a bit worried about rabbits or deer browsing on them. All of these species make berries for the birds. Unfortunately, they only sell and ship the seedlings in the Spring and they are done for the season. But I'm already thinking about what I want for next year. Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.dred.state.nh.us/nhnursery/

I grew a whole hedge of this for several years; it got too big (4x4 feet even with regular pruning) so I removed the hedge. I think this plant would need a large container to do well for years. It does have a yellow, nicely scented bloom in spring. Warty barberry is a fairly common commercial landscape plant in Portland and does reliably get a red speckled appearance in fall/winter, but I've never seen a showy one. If you like a rich orange bloom in spring, consider the newer dwarfing Darwin barberry. It is not so coarsely thorny, and could do well in a pot long term.

Well, it could be molded, although it took a heck of a lot of bayberries and even more skimming. My mom had one shaped like a Christmas tree, which lasted for many, many years even with burning it every Christmas Eve/day + when they entertained during the holidays. It was older than I was and they still had a fair amount of the bottom of the tree left when they retired, which was when I was in my 30s. But these days I expect that Delilah66's link is probably the best you're likely to find for pillars. Must be a lot of wax mixed in to be so pale.