Common barberry: description, planting and care, photo

Barberry is quite popular among florists and gardeners. It is planted for various purposes: to obtain fruits that are beneficial to the body, as well as to give a decorative look to a summer cottage. In this article, we will tell you about what kind of culture it is, how it is used, and also tell you about the correct planting and caring for barberry.

Common barberry: description of the bush

Shrub Common barberry: photo of fruits

Common barberry belongs to shrubs and to the Barberry family. It includes about six hundred species. The plant loves southern and temperate climates.

This culture was first discovered on the territory of Southwest Asia. Today barberry grows in many countries, in particular, in the vastness of the Caucasus, Asia Minor, and Southeastern Europe. This culture can also be found in natural conditions: on lawns, forest edges, slopes. Barberry loves sunny places that are protected from the winds.

This culture is quite tall, about 250 centimeters. It grows in the form of a shrub, has a strong lignified root system. From the outside, the barberry is covered with a light brown bark, from the inside, the bark is of an interesting bright yellow color. Barberry rhizomes have a creeping shape.

The shoots of the common barberry are erect. Almost not tilted. Some of their shoots have a noticeable ribbed surface. They are usually yellowish or purple in color. Barberry shoots are subdivided according to their functionality. On those that are shorter, foliage is formed, on the long ones, thorny thorns are formed, and not leaves.

The foliage of the barberry has a rather thin structure, most of the leaves are in the shape of an ellipse. As a rule, one sheet is four centimeters long and about two wide. The base of the leaf tapers. The upper part of the leaf is slightly rounded, occasionally it is pointed. Spiny thorns of complex shape, as a rule, three- or five-part. They grow in length about two centimeters. The color of the foliage can vary greatly, depending on the variety and species. Leaves can be bright green, a wide variety of yellow tones and even reds. There are subspecies of barberry that can change their color during one season. Such varieties are in great demand when decorating plots.

Barberry: flowering

Shrub Common barberry: photo of fruits

Common barberry begins to bloom around late April - early May. It depends a lot on the weather. If the weather is cold, flowering may be delayed. The flowering itself lasts about one month. The barberry is pollinated with the help of insects. Barberry plants are monoecious. But at the same time, in order to obtain the maximum yield of berries, experienced gardeners recommend using cross-pollination. For this, there should be two or three shrubs, between which there will be no more than thirty centimeters.

Barberry blooms with yellow flowers. They are not large in size, about six to ten millimeters in diameter. Each flower has 6 sepals and petals. The flowers themselves are grouped into brushes, each of which contains from two to thirty flowers. As a rule, one inflorescence is about sixty millimeters long.

Flowers have an interesting structure. At the base is a nectary, which has an orange color. The pistil, rather large in size, is surrounded by six stamens.The stamens are located on the opposite side of the petals.

The fruits of the common barberry ripen for a long time. After they are tied, it can usually take about 2 months. And only this elliptical berries are formed. They can change their color for a month, as a rule, becoming bright red, occasionally purple. Seeds of common barberry are short and flattened. In length they reach no more than seven millimeters.

The use of common barberry

Shrub Common barberry: photo

Common barberry can be both in the form of trees and in the form of shrubs. Both forms are very popular with landscape designers. This culture is actively used for alpine slides, rockeries. Sometimes barberry is planted as a separate plant from the rest, or it is planted in the central part among other plantings. With the help of barberry, lawns and flower beds are framed, hedges are formed, and so on.

Experienced gardeners believe that rock gardens are a better place for this culture. At the same time, medium-sized plants are planted (about one and a half to two meters) and dwarf (about half a meter in height). In the case of taller barberry plants, they are the high point of the composition, and undersized crops are transitional elements that can soften sudden changes.

Common barberry looks great with other crops, for example, with conifers. In addition, with such an abundance of foliage colors, it can be combined with many different cultures. In autumn, most of the barberry varieties change color, while retaining their foliage for a long time, and at the same time their decorative appearance.

If you plant barberry as a curb plant, or a "living fence", then you become the owner of good protection for your lawn or flower bed, since barberry bushes grow very densely, moreover, they have a large number of thorns.

A hedge is well formed from barberry shrubs. You can let the growth of the plant take its course, or you can periodically prune it. Barberry tolerates this procedure well.

If you are the owner of a small garden, then you can plant the barberry as a separate growing plant. You can easily pick up the plant you need, since different types of barberry have a wide variety of external qualities.

A shrub that has grown well can fit into almost any landscape design of the site. Barberry prefers sunny areas more, but lonely shrubs can be planted in partial shade.

As a rule, in open areas, they prefer to plant barberry with purple and variegated foliage. Shrubs with green and dark green foliage are planted in the shade and partial shade.

This crop looks good in combination with a wide variety of crops, so barberry is suitable for mixed beds. And since the barberry is still able to change the color of the foliage, this allows you to add even more decorative effect.

Jasmine, lilac, wisteria look great next to barberry. Also, asters, septenins, chrysanthemums will be beautiful neighbors.

In addition to the fact that barberry is used for decorative purposes, the berries of this plant themselves are widely used. So, the fruits of barberry have a pleasant sweet taste with a light sour component. As a rule, jam, marmalade, jelly, and preserves are made from such berries. Often, barberry-based juice, nectar or syrup can be found.

It is important that only ripe fruits of common barberry can be used, since the berries that are not yet ripe have harmful toxic elements.

In addition to cooking, barberry berries are used in both folk and classical medicine. By the way, leaves with bark are also used for this purpose. Different parts of the barberry help get rid of liver and kidney problems. It helps well with eye diseases, scurvy and tuberculosis.Barberry is used for problems with the gastrointestinal tract, as well as for diseases of the cardiovascular system.

Common barberry: planting and care

Shrub Common barberry: photo of fruits

Common barberry is a rather unpretentious plant and no special efforts are required. Do not let your barberry grow and thicken too much. The growth of barberry is moderate, and the formation of the crown should be carried out every season.

Barberry most of all loves open sunny areas, some shading is acceptable, but undesirable. Since in the shade or partial shade, the barberry will grow more slowly.

It is worth noting that on well-lit land, barberry is able to demonstrate a seasonal change in foliage color.

When planting barberry, choose not heavy soil, moisture should be medium. In principle, barberry is not very picky about the soil. However, it is better to give preference to dry soil. Barberry tolerates dry conditions better than too much moisture.

Planting is usually done in early autumn or late spring. When choosing seedlings, pay attention to the number of buds on the shoots. There should be at least four of them on each. When planting, observe the distance between plants, it should be from fifty centimeters to one meter. If the soil is poor, then you need to make a comprehensive top dressing in each planting hole. It must contain the right amount of essential substances.

Water your plantings when the soil becomes dry. As a rule, not more often than once every fifteen to twenty days.

As for feeding, the first time fertilizers are applied a year after planting. The composition of the fertilizer should be dominated by nitrogen. For example, a urea solution at the rate of 0.2% per 10 liters of water is well suited. This amount must be applied under one plant. At the end of autumn in the same year, shrubs need to be mulched with a layer of peat. These procedures must be repeated in subsequent seasons.

A very important element in caring for barberry is pruning. Sanitary pruning should be done in early spring. It is necessary to remove dried, affected and deformed branches. Also, during sanitary pruning, you need to remove thickening shoots that are directed into the bush.

Formative pruning is usually done a couple of times a year. Usually in early June and early autumn. How exactly to do this depends on the shape of the shrub you want to achieve.

Common barberry is a fairly frost-resistant crop, and is able to survive even -45 degrees. For this reason, additional preparation for wintering is not required. This applies even to young plants, they also do not require additional shelter.

Reproduction

Shrub Common barberry: photo of fruits

Common barberry reproduces in different ways: dividing the shrub, using layering, cuttings, seed method and with the help of offspring.

There is no big difference in the propagation method, but experienced growers prefer cuttings and layering.

Common barberry is practically not affected by harmful insects and diseases. However, it can sometimes be affected by powdery mildew. Colloidal sulfur is used to combat this scourge. Plants are sprayed with this solution until the symptoms go away.

Also among the possibly active pests is the barberry aphid. Its attacks make the foliage of the barberry dry. Aphids are small and very difficult to see. So be sure to periodically examine the underside of the foliage. To get rid of aphids, you can use a solution of soap and water. The concentration should be 0.3%.

Shrub Common barberry: photo