Japanese barberry Berberis thunbergii

Features

The species originates from East Asia (Japan) and has spread in Europe as an ornamental shrub through parks and greens with many varieties and shapes. All parts of the plant except the fruit are very poisonous!

Species	Scrubs (Nanofanerophytes)
Living space
Size	1-3 m

Description

B. thunbergii has deeply grooved, brown, spiny branches with a single (occasionally tridentine) spine (actually a highly modified leaf) at each shoot node. The leaves are green to blue-green (reddish or purple in some horticultural variants), very small, spatula to oval shaped, 12–24 mm long and 3–15 mm broad; they are produced in clusters of 2–6 on a dwarf shoot in the axil of each spine. The flowers are pale yellow, 5–8 mm diameter, produced in drooping 1–1.5 cm long umbrella-shaped clusters of 2–5; flowering is from mid spring to early summer. The edible fruit is a glossy bright red to orange-red, ovoid berry 7–10 mm long and 4–7 mm broad, containing a single seed.