Organic Common Barberry Seeds (Berberis Vulgaris)
3.00 €
Our only native species is this attractive, medium-sized shrub with pendulous racemes of small, pale yellow flowers (with unusual, sensitive stamens) followed by bright red, translucent berries. These are edible and make an excellent jelly.
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Organic Common Barberry (Berberis Vulgaris)
Our only native species is this attractive, medium-sized shrub with pendulous racemes of small, pale yellow flowers (with unusual, sensitive stamens) followed by bright red, translucent berries.
These are edible and make an excellent jelly; indeed, the plant was once much cultivated for them. The bark yields a beautiful dye and was also once used in the treatment of jaundice. (N.B. This particular species has the misfortune to be the alternate host of the Black Rust of Wheat and it should not therefore, be planted in wheat-growing districts.) 10ft (3m).
How to Grow
Sow under glass in autumn or late winter/ early spring. In autumn sow into moist, well-drained seed compost and place in cold frame. Natural winter cold should offer ideal conditions for germination to occur in spring as the weather warms. Can be sown indoors or under glass at 10-15°C at other times.
Germination takes 60-180 days. If germination does not occur cold stratify. Move seeds to 4°C for 8 weeks then return to warmth for germination. Transplant seedlings when large enough to handle to 8cm pots and grow on. Best to keep plants under glass for their first winter. Acclimatise and plant out the following spring/summer.