Description
Form: Shrub.
Lifespan: Perennial.
Leaf retention: Evergreen.
Growth rate: Slow to moderate.
Mature Size: 4-8' high and as wide.
Flowers: Yellow, loosely clustered, often massed, fragrant.
Bloom: Late winter and spring.
Fruit: Red to yellow, round, pea-sized, edible, ripening mid-spring into summer.
Leaves: The species listed below have holly-like, gray-green, stiff, narrow leaflets,
with very sharp spines. New leaves may be reddish. Some species have no spines and leaves that
remain reddish all year.
Stems: Rigid, spreading, possibly with a few thorns.
Roots: These plants spread by rhizomes and can form thickets by suckering, making
them useful as stout barriers and hedges.
Species of Note:
Berberis haematocarpa, Red Barberry.
Berberis trifoliolata, Agarita / Algerita: Distinguished by three
narrow leaflets joined at their base. Nurseries may use the name Mahoney trifoliolata.
Wildlife: The flowers attract bees and are considered a good honey source.
The fruit attracts birds. Small mammals may use the plant for shade. This plant is deer
resistant.
Toxic / Danger: Prickly leaves, possible thorns on stems. For some Berberis
species, all parts are mildly poisonous except for ripe fruit.
Origin: Arizona to Texas and Mexico.