2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Barberry Thunberg (lat. Berberis thunbergii) Is a highly decorative shrub of the Barberry family. The natural range is the mountain slopes of China and Japan.
Characteristics of culture
Barberry Thunberg is a deciduous shrub up to 1-1.5 m high with horizontal spreading branches. Young shoots are arched, bright red, purple-red or yellowish, with age - purple-brown or brown. Shoots are equipped with simple, thin and elastic spines up to 1 cm long. Leaves are graceful, medium-sized, oblong or obovate, short-petiolate, rich green in color. In autumn, the foliage takes on a bright red color.
Flowers are single or collected in bunches of 2-5 pieces. On the outside, the flowers are reddish, on the inside, yellow. Flowering lasts 8-12 days. Fruits are elliptical, coral red with a distinct sheen. The fruits ripen in September and hang on the branches for a long time. The fruits have a bitter taste, this is due to the content of alkaloids. The fruits of the Thunberg barberry are unsuitable for food, but they are an excellent food for wintering birds.
Growing conditions
The Thunberg barberry is undemanding to soil conditions, but blooms more abundantly on loose, breathable, fertile soils. The culture is relatively drought-resistant, not afraid of strong gusty winds. Waterlogging is negative. Barberry Thunberg is photophilous, but it also accepts semi-shaded areas. In order to obtain a more saturated foliage color, it is advisable to grow plants in intensely lit areas. A semi-shaded location is required for the "Aurea" variety.
Reproduction and planting
The Thunberg barberry is propagated by seeds, root suckers, dividing the bush and summer cuttings. Seeds are sown in the fall immediately after harvesting the fruits. Freshly harvested seeds are squeezed, ground through a sieve, then washed and dried. Seeds are sown in grooves with a depth of 0.5-1 cm. Spring sowing is also possible. In this case, the seeds need preliminary stratification, which lasts from 2 to 5 months. With the appearance of 2-3 true leaves on the shoots, the crops are thinned out. The distance between seedlings should be about 3 cm. Transplantation of young plants grown by sowing seeds is carried out after 2 years.
Cutting is considered an equally effective way of propagating Thunberg barberry. Cut green cuttings in June. Plants grown in this way are transplanted to a permanent place in 1-2 years. When planting seedlings of a culture, it is important to observe a distance between plants equal to 1.5-2 m. A denser planting is also possible, but undesirable. The planting pit for the Thunberg barberry is prepared in advance. The soil taken out of the pit is thoroughly mixed with humus and sand, taken in equal amounts. Acidic soils are preliminarily limed with slaked lime or wood ash.
Care
Caring for the Thunberg barberry is simple. It consists of procedures that are standard for all ornamental shrubs. Especially important for the feeding culture. The first feeding is carried out in the second year after planting. Urea is used as fertilizer (20-30 g per 1 sq. M). Subsequently, the plants are fertilized every three years. Watering is carried out once a week; in a drought, the number of irrigations and the volume of water used are increased 2-3 times.
Also, the Thunberg barberry needs frequent weeding and loosening. Mulching the near-stem zone is desirable, but not necessary. Both natural and non-natural material can be used as mulch. Sanitary and formative pruning of shrubs is done annually in early spring. Thunberg barberry is often affected by various pests, especially barberry aphid and flower moth. To combat the first, use a tobacco solution, with the second - solutions of "Chlorophos" or "Decis".
Application
Thunberg barberry is ideal for creating hedges and borders. Fences made from these unpretentious plants lend themselves to shearing, which allows you to give the shrubs the necessary shape. A perfectly considered variety of barberries looks in group and specimen plantings, as well as in rock gardens.
Recommended:
Barberry
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.
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
Astilba Thunberg
Astilbe Thunberg (lat.Astilbe thunbergii) - a representative of the Astilba genus of the Stonefragment family. In nature, it is common in Japan and the Kuril Islands. It is endemic, that is, in natural conditions it grows in a limited area.
