2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Barberry (lat. Berberis) - an ornamental shrub of the Barberry family.
Characteristics of culture
Barberry is a deciduous, evergreen or semi-evergreen shrub, less often a tree, with erect, thin, ribbed shoots that branch at an acute angle. The bark is brownish gray or brown. Leaves are simple, ovate, elliptical or obovate, articulated with a short petiole, collected in bunches of 2-7 pieces, arranged alternately, depending on the variety, green, purple, yellow or variegated. The spines are simple, trifoliate, less often quintuple, located at the base of the buds or shortened shoots.
The flowers are small, golden yellow in color, and have a pleasant aroma. The corolla consists of six petals with nectaries. Flowering takes place in the second decade of May, sometimes earlier. Barberry fruits are oblong, elliptical, spherical or ovoid, red, purple or black in color. The seeds are ribbed, tapering at both ends, usually brown and shiny.
Barberry is widespread in Eastern Siberia, Crimea, the Urals, Kazakhstan, North America and countries of southern and central Europe.
Views
* Common barberry (lat. Berberis vulgaris) - the species is represented by a thorny shrub up to 3 m high. At the beginning of development, it is vertical, later - drooping, fast-growing. The thorns are green, in autumn they change color to red or yellow-orange. The flowers are yellow and have a strong aroma. Common barberry blooms in mid-May. Elliptical fruits, dark red or orange-red shades, have a sweet and sour taste, ripen in the second decade of September. The species is resistant to drought and frost, not picky about the soil. Prefers sunny or semi-shaded areas; heavy shade should be avoided. Soils are desirable alkaline, in no case loamy and acidic.
* Barberry Thunberg (lat. Berberis thunbergii) - the species is represented by a thorny shrub up to 2 m high. The thorns are dense, light green in color, in autumn they are fiery orange or scarlet. The flowers are numerous, yellow. fruits are oval, light red. The species is winter-hardy, prefers sunny or semi-shaded areas, with drained, neutral or acidified soils with a rich mineral composition.
* Ottawa barberry (lat. Berberis ottawensis) - the species is represented by a tall thorny shrub, outwardly similar to the Thunberg barberry. The thorns are green, crimson in autumn. The flowers are yellow, the fruits are red, elongated.
* Narrow-leaved barberry (lat. Berberis stenophylla) - the species is represented by a free-growing shrub with arched drooping branches, up to 3 m high. The leaves are evergreen, blue-white from the bottom, dark green from the top. The flowers are small, narrow-leaved, golden yellow, have a pleasant aroma. Fruits are elongated, blue-black. Narrow-leaved barberry prefers sunny areas. The species is thermophilic, it has a negative attitude towards frosts.
* Amur barberry (lat. Berberis amurensis) - the species is represented by a shrub with a spreading crown up to 3 m high. The leaves are large, simple, green, with a sheen, in the fall - golden or red. The flowers are light yellow, numerous. Flowering lasts 15-20 days. Fruits are red, edible, persist for a long time on the branches. The species is drought-resistant, rarely exposed to diseases and pests.
Reproduction and planting
The shrub is propagated by division, cuttings, root suckers and seeds. Sowing with seeds is carried out in the fall. Cut culture in June.
Barberry is planted in autumn, usually at the end of September. Acidic soils are limed, after which they begin to prepare the planting pit. The size of the pit should be 40 * 40 cm. The soil taken out of the pit is mixed with peat, humus and wood ash. Part of the soil substrate is lowered to the bottom of the pit, then the seedling is placed under a slight slope, tamped with the remaining soil, watered abundantly and mulched. With single plantings, the distance between the bushes should be about 1.5-2 meters, when creating a hedge - at the rate of two bushes per linear meter.
Care
Barberries need fertilizing with mineral fertilizers (especially nitrogen fertilizers) every three to four years, regular loosening and weeding. Watering is carried out once a week, during a drought, the number of waterings is increased. Sanitary pruning of shrubs and thinning branches are annually carried out. Barberry does not need shaping, but it accepts a haircut, takes various forms.
Application
Barberry is distinguished by its increased decorative properties, which is why it is widely used in ornamental gardening. The shrub is ideal for making tapeworms, group plantings, hedges and curbs. In addition to decorative properties, planting barberry is able to protect the summer cottage / garden area from strong winds and the penetration of rodents. Low-growing varieties and species are used to create rock gardens and other types of rocky gardens. The fruits of shrubs are edible, they are often used in cooking.
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How To Store Barberry Correctly
The unpretentious barberry feels great in almost any climate, so it can be found more and more often in modern gardens. This plant differs from many of its other counterparts in that absolutely everything is useful in it: both wood, and leaves, and fruits - it is not surprising that many people strive to prepare barberry for future use. How can you preserve the miraculous barberry?
Medicinal Properties Of Common Barberry
The medicinal properties of barberry have been known since ancient times. The first mention of them was found on clay tablets from the library of King Ashurbanipal of the Assyrian state. Scientists date the find to 650 years BC. Healers of India, Babylon have successfully used all parts of the plant for the treatment of many diseases. Where are barberry thickets found today?
Common Barberry
Six hundred years BC, when people tried to leave their experience to descendants, the Assyrian king with a very long name Ashurbanipala wrote on a clay tablet about the ability of the barberry plant to “purify blood”. It was also used as a medicine in Ancient Babylon, in India. This beautiful plant is still popular today
Amur Barberry
Amur barberry is part of a family called barberry. In the Latin version, the name of this plant sounds like this: Berberis amurensis Rupr. Description of Amur barberry Amur barberry is a shrub whose height can even reach two meters. The leaves of this plant will be elliptical and obovate, the length of such leaves can be about ten to twelve centimeters, and the width of these leaves will be about four to five centimeters.
Korean Barberry
Korean barberry (lat.Berberis koreana) - a species of the genus Barberry of the family Barberry. Homeland - the Korean Peninsula. Typical habitats in nature are rocky gorges and mountain slopes. Characteristics of culture Korean barberry is a shrub up to 2 m high, equipped with simple short spines.
