Many amateur gardeners decorate their home gardens with ornamental plants. Among them there is also an ordinary barberry. The bushes of this plant are decorated with beautiful berries known to us from childhood. The plant has not only an attractive appearance, but also has healing properties.
Growth regions
Barberry can safely be considered one of the most common berry bushes that grows in Asia, Europe and North America. In the wild, there are a variety of its species, but the common barberry has become the most famous. It is about him that will be discussed in our article.
The plant is very common in the European part of Russia. It is also found in almost the entire territory of Ukraine, in the Caucasus, in the Crimea. Sometimes the shrub grows even in the forest-steppe zone. Most often, the plant chooses for itself rocky slopes, clearings and edges, as well as hillocks.
Barberry ordinary: photo and description
The plant belongs to the barberry family. In general, the common barberry is a shrub with thorns, the height of which can reach threemeters. The deciduous plant is highly branched and has a strong superficial root system. The old shoots of the bush are covered with gray bark. But the young branches have a yellow-brown hue. The branches of the common barberry (photo is given in the article), although thin, are equipped with thorns.
Barberry is absolutely undemanding to growing conditions, and therefore is so popular among gardeners. The plant is quite winter-hardy and drought-resistant. However, it needs bright sunlight. The leaves of barberry have a characteristic elliptical shape. They are dark green above and lighter below. The plant blooms in the first half of June. Its yellow inflorescences are collected in a brush.
After flowering, oblong-shaped berries begin to form on the bushes. When ripe, they turn red, but retain sourness. You can harvest barberry in September.
Useful properties of the plant
The medicinal properties of common barberry have been known since ancient times. It is often used to treat various ailments. And at present, different parts of the plant act as raw materials for the preparation of decoctions, infusions and extracts. Practically all parts of the bush have useful properties, from leaves to berries. The plant contains berberine, which has an antibacterial effect, vitamins P, E, C, essential oils, pectin, carotene, tannins. It also contains acids - malic and citric.
Barberry is used as a hemostaticfacilities. It is effective in the treatment of the gallbladder, gums, urinary tract, liver and kidneys. It is also used for gout, rheumatism, jaundice, sciatica and pathology of the spleen. The fruits of the plant have a laxative effect. They can be used to increase appetite.
Use in cooking
Common barberry is known for its valuable nutritional qualities, thanks to which it is actively used in cooking. Ripe berries are good both fresh and dried. By the way, the young foliage of the plant is used as food. It is put in salads and soups. Barberry berries can be added to meat dishes. Juices, drinks, marmalade are prepared from fruits, syrups, jams, marshmallows and mousses are cooked. Berries can be pickled and s alted.
Barberry bushes are excellent honey plants. Barberry honey has a pleasant aroma and a delicate sweet taste. The nectar is colored golden yellow.
Planting barberry
Due to its useful properties and attractive appearance, the common barberry (photo is given in the article) has long been used by people as an ornamental shrub in home gardens.
The plant is not particularly demanding on the soil. Any soil is suitable for planting common barberry. However, for the plant it is necessary to choose only sunny areas. Shrubs are winter-hardy and drought-resistant, but at the same time they cannot stand the shade at all. And with strong shading, they generally cease to bear fruit.
Saplings of common barberry are planted in autumnor in the spring. For planting, they dig a hole measuring 50 by 50 centimeters and up to 40 centimeters deep. If the soil in the planting area is heavy, then the dimensions of the pit can be increased and fertile soil added. You can also add mineral fertilizers.
The seedling of the plant is placed in a hole, filled with water and covered with soil. Then the soil is compacted and refilled.
This completes the boarding process.
In general, you should pay attention to choosing the right site for planting. Despite the fact that it is unpretentious, it is still worth choosing more fertile sites with good drainage.
If the soil in your garden is too acidic, then you need to lime it. It is recommended to add sand to the planting hole to increase aeration.
Currently there are many varieties of plants, but they are all similar in care. If you decide to plant a barberry in the garden, then you need to do this in the fall - until mid-October, and in the spring - until the second half of April.
Crop care
Caring for the common barberry is not difficult, because the plants cannot be called capricious. And yet sometimes it will have to be pampered with your attention. Regularly it is necessary to loosen the soil, removing weeds. The plant needs proper systematic watering once a week.
Periodically bushes need to be fed with fertilizers. This is done quite rarely, as a rule, once every few years. Nitrogen fertilizers can only be applied in spring, but phosphorus-potassium and organic fertilizers can be applied in autumn.
Howyou see, there is nothing difficult in growing barberry ordinary. It is very easy to care for compared to other plants.
Pruning the common barberry bush
Decorative barberry trees and shrubs can be a real decoration of your site. They can even form a hedge. But for this, the bushes must be cut correctly. Almost all varieties of barberry tolerate pruning well.
There are two types of it. Simple pruning is done annually and includes the removal of broken and damaged branches. For the first time, thinning of shoots is carried out in the spring on a one-year-old plant. But decorative pruning is done in order to give the correct shape to the plants. This is done twice a year. Low-growing species may well do without pruning if it is not necessary.
Diseases and pests
The description of the common barberry would be incomplete if you do not remember that the plant is also susceptible to disease. Despite all the unpretentiousness in care, unfortunately, the bushes are not immune from pests.
The plant can be affected by rice aphid, sawfly or flower moth. When aphids appear on the bushes, the leaves shrivel and dry out. But the moth is more dangerous for a plant that has berries, since the pest eats away the fruits. Aphids can be de alt with with a soap solution, other pests are poisoned with chlorophos.
Barberries of all diseases are the most susceptible to fungal infections. Among them are powdery mildew, leaf spot,bacteriosis, rust. Fungal infections can be fought with a solution of colloidal sulfur or Bordeaux liquid.
Reproduction of barberry
Propagation of barberry bushes is possible in several ways: seeds, cuttings, dividing the bush and layering. Each of the methods has its own characteristics.
To obtain barberry seeds, it is necessary to collect ripe berries, separate the seeds and soak them for several minutes in a solution of potassium permanganate. The seeds are then dried. In autumn, they can be planted in open ground and wait until spring for the first shoots to appear. Seedlings are grown at the planting site until the age of two, and then transplanted to a permanent place. If you decide to sow the seeds in the spring, you will first have to germinate them at home in a box.
Plant seedlings, transplanted to a permanent place, give the first fruits only after two to three years. However, it is worth knowing that at least two bushes, or even more, must be planted on the site, since fruiting is possible only with cross-pollination.
The easiest and fastest way to propagate barberry is to plant cuttings. They are cut in June. The leaves are removed from the pagons and dipped for a couple of hours in a solution of epin or root. Next, the cuttings are planted in a small greenhouse in moist soil. They will be there for several weeks. During this time, it is necessary to periodically open the film for ventilation. After rooting, the cuttings are transplanted to a permanent place.
Barberry can also be propagatedlayering. To do this, in the spring it is necessary to look after the annual shoot, located near the ground, and bend it to the soil, sprinkled with soil. Only the top of the pagon should remain on the surface of the earth. By autumn, the shoot will be fully rooted and you will have your own seedling that will need to be transplanted.
Propagate barberry by dividing the bush is not the easiest way. The fact is that you can divide plants that have reached at least two years of age. In the spring, the bush must be dug up and divided into two parts with a pruner. Next, both plants are planted in the ground. The main disadvantage of this method is severe trauma to the root system.
Preparing plants for winter
With the arrival of autumn, the soil around the bush is mulched with soft peat and dry foliage. Plants that have not reached the age of five must be covered before the onset of cold weather. If the bush is too voluminous, then its branches are pulled together with a rope, and a mesh cylinder is built around the plant. The interior space inside the structure is covered with foliage.
Varieties of barberry
There is a large selection of varieties and types of barberry. All of them are very attractive. When choosing a variety for planting, you need to focus on what goal you set for yourself. Perhaps you want to get some fruit or just decorate your garden or even form a hedge. In all these cases, the appropriate plant species should be selected.
The most common variety of common barberry is Atropurpurea. The plant hasquite large in size and reaches a height of up to two meters. Its foliage is maroon in color. Bushes grow very quickly and stand out against the background of the surrounding greenery. In the garden, such a plant will not go unnoticed.
Shrubs require good lighting, in the shade their foliage becomes lighter. But, unfortunately, with age, plants lose their decorative appearance. Therefore, they need to be updated and trimmed regularly.
Best varieties
However, it is worth noting that the common barberry is far from the only representative of the genus. The most beautiful representative of deciduous forms is the Thunberg barberry. In height, such a plant reaches one meter. Its branches are colored yellow or bright red. With age, the plant changes color to purple-brown. Barberry Thunberg bears fruit. The berries ripen in early autumn. However, due to the high content of alkaloids in them, they have a bitter aftertaste. But for birds, the fruits are quite suitable. Caring for the plant is not at all difficult, but its decorative beauty will delight you throughout the year. The best varieties of this species include: Golden Ring, Red Pilar, Orange Rocket, Kornik.
No less impressive is the Ottawa barberry, which is a hybrid between the Thunberg barberry and a form of Atropurpurea. The plant reaches a height of up to two meters. The bushes look very impressive. Their foliage is pink-purple, and sometimes black. And in the autumn, the bushes become crimsonshade, pleasing the eyes of the owners. The advantages of the Ottawa barberry include its winter hardiness and unpretentious care. The most famous and popular varieties: Superba, Aurikoma, Silver Miles.
Instead of afterword
The attention of gardeners is attracted not only by the decorative qualities of the plant, but also by its beneficial properties. Of course, bushes can be grown solely for the sake of decorating the garden, but do not forget about the beneficial properties of barberry. Beautiful fruits are not only a beautiful addition, but also a storehouse of vitamins and nutrients. In addition, dried and fresh berries are used in cooking. When choosing a suitable variety for planting, consider all the qualities that you want to get by planting a plant.
