View source for Berberis

{{Short description|Genus of flowering plants representing the barberry family}}
{{Redirect|Calafate|the Patagonian town|El Calafate}}
{{Redirect|Barberry|the luxury fashion house|Burberry}}
{{automatic taxobox
|image = Berberis darwinii shoot.jpg
|image_caption = ''Berberis darwinii'' shoot with flowers
|image2 = Berberis thunb frt.jpg
|image2_caption = ''Berberis thunbergii'' shoot with fruit
|taxon = Berberis
|authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]
|subdivision_ranks = Species
|subdivision = [[List of Berberis and Mahonia species|List of ''Berberis'' and ''Mahonia'' species]]
|type_species = ''[[Berberis vulgaris]]''
|type_species_authority = [[Carl Linnaeus|L.]]
}}

'''''Berberis''''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɜr|b|ər|ɪ|s}}), commonly known as '''barberry''',<ref>{{Cite book|url=http://www.forest.go.kr/kna/special/download/English_Names_for_Korean_Native_Plants.pdf|title=English Names for Korean Native Plants|publisher=[[Korea National Arboretum]]|year=2015|isbn=978-89-97450-98-5|location=Pocheon|pages=371|access-date=26 January 2017|via=[[Korea Forest Service]]|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525105020/http://www.forest.go.kr/kna/special/download/English_Names_for_Korean_Native_Plants.pdf|archive-date=25 May 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Wedgwood|first=Hensleigh|author-link=Hensleigh Wedgwood|title=On False Etymologies|journal=Transactions of the Philological Society|url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3924121;view=1up;seq=76|year=1855|issue=6|pages=66}}</ref> is a large [[genus]] of [[deciduous]] and [[evergreen]] [[shrub]]s from {{convert|1|–|5|m|ft|abbr=on}} tall, found throughout [[Temperateness|temperate]] and [[subtropical]] regions of the world (apart from Australia). Species diversity is greatest in South America and Asia; Europe, Africa and North America have native species as well. The best-known ''Berberis'' species is the European barberry, ''[[Berberis vulgaris]]'', which is common in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and central Asia, and has been widely introduced in North America. Many of the species have [[Spine (botany)|spines]] on the shoots and all along the margins of the leaves.<ref name="eflorasorg1"/><ref>[http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=103816 Flora of China Vol. 19 Page 715 <big>小檗属</big> xiao bo shu ''Berberis'' Linnaeus, Sp. Pl. 1: 330. 1753. ]</ref>

==Description==
The genus ''Berberis'' has dimorphic shoots: long shoots which form the structure of the plant, and short shoots only {{convert|1|–|2|mm|in|abbr=on}} long. The [[leaf|leaves]] on long shoots are non-[[Photosynthesis|photosynthetic]], developed into one to three or more spines<ref name=CStace>{{cite book|last=Stace|first=C. A.|author-link=Stace, C. A.|year=2010|title=New Flora of the British Isles|edition=Third|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location = Cambridge, U.K.|isbn=9780521707725|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c6IpngEACAAJ}}</ref>{{rp|96}} {{convert|3|–|30|mm|in|abbr=on}} long. The bud in the [[axil]] of each thorn-leaf then develops a short shoot with several normal, photosynthetic leaves. These leaves are {{convert|1|–|10|cm|in|abbr=on}} long, simple, and either entire, or with spiny margins. Only on young seedlings do leaves develop on the long shoots, with the adult foliage style developing after the young plant is 1–2 years old.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

Many deciduous species, such as ''[[Berberis thunbergii]] and [[Berberis vulgaris|B. vulgaris]]'', are noted for their attractive pink or red autumn colour. In some evergreen species from China, such as ''[[Berberis candidula|B. candidula]] and [[Berberis verruculosa|B. verruculosa]]'', the undersides of the leaves are brilliant white, a feature valued horticulturally. Some horticultural variants of ''B. thunbergii'' have dark red to violet foliage. Such as ''B. thunbergii'' f. ''atropurpurea'' 'Admiration',<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/226438/i-Berberis-thunbergii-i-f-i-atropurpurea-i-Admiration-sup-(PBR)-sup/Details |title = RHS Plantfinder – ''Berberis thunbergii'' f. ''atropurpurea'' 'Admiration' |publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date=21 January 2018}}</ref> and ''B. thunbergii'' f. ''atropurpurea'' 'Atropurpurea Nana'.<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/90145/i-Berberis-thunbergii-i-f-i-atropurpurea-i-Atropurpurea-Nana/Details
|title = RHS Plantfinder – ''Berberis thunbergii'' f. ''atropurpurea'' 'Atropurpurea Nana' | publisher = Royal Horticultural Society | access-date=21 January 2018}}</ref>

The flowers are produced singly or in [[raceme]]s of up to 20 on a single flower-head. They are yellow or orange, {{convert|3|–|6|mm|in|abbr=on}} long, [[sepal]]s are usually six, rarely three or nine and there are six [[petal]]s in alternating whorls of three, the sepals usually coloured like the petals. The fruit is a small [[berry (botany)|berry]] {{convert|5|–|15|mm|in|abbr=on}} long, ripening red or dark blue, often with a pink or violet waxy surface bloom; in some species, they may be long and narrow, but are spherical in other species.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

Some authors regard the compound-leaved species as belonging to a different genus, ''[[Mahonia]]''. There are no consistent differences between the two groups other than the leaf [[pinnation]] (''Berberis sensu stricto'' appear to have simple leaves, but these are in reality compound with a single leaflet; they are termed "unifoliolate"<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Pabón-Mora|first1=Natalia|last2=González|first2=Favio|date=2012|title= Leaf development, metamorphic heteroblasty and heterophylly in ''Berberis s. l.'' (Berberidaceae)|journal=The Botanical Review|volume=78|issue=4|pages=463–489|doi= 10.1007/s12229-012-9107-2|bibcode=2012BotRv..78..463P |s2cid=15401971}}</ref>), and many botanists prefer to classify all these plants in the single genus ''Berberis''.<ref name="eflorasorg1">{{cite web|url=http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=233500229|title=''Berberis fremontii'' in Flora of North America @ efloras.org|website=www.efloras.org}}</ref><ref>Loconte, H., & J. R. Estes. 1989. Phylogenetic systematics of ''Berberidaceae'' and ''Ranunculales'' (Magnoliidae). ''Systematic Botany'' 14:565-579.</ref><ref>Marroquín, Jorge S., & Joseph E. Laferrière. 1997. Transfer of specific and infraspecific taxa from ''Mahonia'' to ''Berberis''. ''Journal of the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science'' 30(1):53-55.</ref><ref>Laferrière, Joseph E. 1997. Transfer of specific and infraspecific taxa from ''Mahonia'' to ''Berberis''. ''Botanicheskii Zhurnal'' 82(9):96-99.</ref> However, a recent [[DNA]]-based [[Phylogenetics|phylogenetic]] study retains the two separate genera, by clarifying that unifoliolate-leaved ''Berberis s.s.'' is derived from within a [[paraphyly|paraphyletic]] group of shrubs bearing imparipinnate evergreen leaves, which the paper then divides into three genera: ''Mahonia'', ''[[Alloberberis]]'' (formerly ''Mahonia'' section ''Horridae''), and ''[[Moranothamnus]]'' (formerly ''Berberis claireae''); it confirms that a broadly-circumscribed ''Berberis'' (that is, including ''Mahonia'', ''Alloberberis'', and ''Moranothamnus'') is [[monophyly|monophyletic]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Yu|first1=Chih-Chieh|last2=Chung|first2=Kuo-Fang|date=2017|title=Why Mahonia? Molecular recircumscription of ''Berberis'' s.l., with the description of two new genera, ''Alloberberis'' and ''Moranothamnus''|journal=Taxon|volume=66|issue=6|pages=1371–1392|doi=10.12705/666.6|bibcode=2017Taxon..66.1371Y }}</ref>
[[File:Zereshk Zibad.jpg|thumb|Several species of ''Berberis'' are cultivated in Iran for culinary purposes]]

==Ecology==
''Berberis'' species are used as food plants by the [[larva]]e of some [[Lepidoptera]] species, including the [[moth]]s barberry carpet moth (''[[Pareulype berberata]]''), and mottled pug (''[[Mottled pug|Eupithecia exiguata]]'').{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

''Berberis'' species can infect wheat with [[stem rust]], a serious fungal disease of wheat and related grains.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/biologists-spot-first-uk-case-of-ancient-crop-disease-in-uk-in-six-decades/|title=Biologists Spot First UK Case Of An Ancient Crop Disease In Six Decades|date=15 February 2018 }}</ref> ''[[Berberis vulgaris]]'' (European barberry) and ''[[Berberis canadensis]]'' (American barberry) serve as alternate host species of the [[Rust (fungus)|rust fungus]] responsible, the fungus ''Puccinia graminis''. For this reason, cultivation of ''B. vulgaris'' is prohibited in many areas, and imports to the [[United States]] are forbidden. The North American ''B. canadensis'', native to [[Appalachian Mountains|Appalachia]] and the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest United States]], was nearly eradicated for this reason, and is now rarely seen extant, with the most remaining occurrences in the [[Virginia]] mountains.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

Some ''Berberis'' species have become [[invasive species|invasive]] when planted outside of their native ranges, including ''B. glaucocarpa'' and ''[[Berberis darwinii|B. darwinii]]'' in New Zealand (where it is now banned from sale and propagation), and ''B. vulgaris'' and green-leaved ''[[Berberis thunbergii|B. thunbergii]]'' in much of the eastern United States.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

Japanese barberry is considered an invasive plant in 32 US states. It is deer-resistant because of its taste and is favoured as a shelter for ticks capable of transmitting lyme disease.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.popsci.com/avoid-ticks-forest |title = You're less likely to get a tick bite if you steer clear of these spots| date=11 May 2018 }}</ref>

==Cultivation==
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2021}}
Several species of ''Berberis'' are popular garden shrubs, grown for such features as ornamental leaves, yellow flowers, or red or blue-black berries. Numerous [[cultivars]] and [[Hybrid plant|hybrids]] have been selected for garden use. Low-growing ''Berberis'' plants are also commonly planted as pedestrian barriers. Taller-growing species are valued for crime prevention; being dense and viciously spiny, they are effective barriers to burglars. Thus they are often planted below vulnerable windows, and used as hedges. Many species are resistant to predation by deer.

Species in cultivation include:
* ''[[Berberis darwinii|B. darwinii]]''
* ''[[Berberis dictyophylla|B. dictyophylla]]''
* ''[[Berberis julianae|B. julianae]]''
* ''[[Berberis thunbergii|B. thunbergii]]''
* ''[[Berberis verruculosa|B. verruculosa]]''

The following hybrid selections have gained the [[Royal Horticultural Society]]'s [[Award of Garden Merit]]:
* ''B.'' 'Georgei'<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/21271/Berberis-Georgei/Details|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' 'Georgei' AGM / RHS Gardening|publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>
* ''B.'' × ''lologensis'' 'Apricot Queen'<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/77074/Berberis-x-lologensis-Apricot-Queen/Details|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' × ''lologensis'' 'Apricot Queen' AGM / RHS Gardening|publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>
* ''B.'' × ''media'' 'Red Jewel'<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2173|archive-url=https://archive.today/20121224182817/http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2173|url-status=dead|archive-date=December 24, 2012|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' × ''media'' 'Red Jewel' AGM / RHS Gardening|publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2013-04-07}}</ref>
<!-- AGM withdrawn *''B.'' × ''ottawensis'' f. ''purpurea'' 'Superba'<ref>{{cite web|url=http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=2174|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' × ''ottawensis'' f. purpurea 'Superba' / RHS Gardening|publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2013-04-07}}</ref>-->
* ''B.'' × ''stenophylla'' 'Corallina Compacta'<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/91440/Berberis-x-stenophylla-Corallina-Compacta/Details|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' × ''stenophylla'' 'Corallina Compacta' AGM / RHS Gardening |publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>
* ''B.'' × ''stenophylla'' (golden barberry)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/93438/Berberis-x-stenophylla-Lindl/Details|title=RHS Plant Selector ''Berberis'' × ''stenophylla'' Lindl. AGM / RHS Gardening |publisher=Apps.rhs.org.uk|access-date=2020-04-17}}</ref>

==Uses==

=== Culinary ===
[[File:Zaytinya - December 2018 - Stierch 01.jpg|thumb|Crispy Brussels sprouts with barberries on top]]
''Berberis vulgaris'' grows in the wild in much of Europe and West Asia. It produces large crops of edible berries, rich in [[vitamin C]], but with a sharp acid flavour. In Europe for many centuries the berries were used for culinary purposes much as citrus peel is used. Today in Europe they are very infrequently used. The country in which they are used the most is [[Iran]], where they are referred to as ''zereshk'' ({{lang|fa|زرشک}}) in [[Persian language|Persian]]. The berries are common in [[Iranian cuisine|Persian cuisine]] in rice dishes such as ''zereshk polo'' (a dish of rice cooked in the Persian style with saffron and barberries, often served with chicken) and ''morassa polo'' (literal translation "bejewelled rice", an opulent dish of rice with barberries and slivers of pistachio, almond, and orange peel) and as a flavouring for poultry. Because of their sour flavour, they are sometimes cooked with sugar before being added to Persian rice. Iranian markets sell dried zereshk. By virtue of their limited availability, specialised growing conditions, and the complexity of the harvesting process, they are considered expensive and so are served in the finest of Persian dishes. In Russia and Eastern Europe, it is sometimes used in jams as a source of [[pectin]] (especially with mixed berries). An extract of barberries is a common flavouring for soft drinks, candies, and sweets.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

''[[Berberis microphylla]]'' and ''[[Berberis darwinii|B. darwinii]]'' (both known as ''calafate'' and ''michay'') are two species found in [[Patagonia]] in Argentina and Chile. Their edible purple fruit are used for jams and infusions.{{Cn|date=February 2021}}

=== Traditional medicine ===
The dried fruit of ''[[Berberis vulgaris]]'' is used in [[herbal medicine]].<ref>See e.g. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130801084909/http://umm.edu/health/medical/altmed/herb/barberry "Barberry" @ Alternative Medicine @ University of Maryland Medical Center]</ref> The chemical constituents include [[Isoquinoline|isoquinolone]] [[alkaloid]]s, especially [[berberine]]. A full list of phytochemicals was compiled and published in 2014.<ref> Mokhber-Dezfuli N, Saeidnia S, Gohari AR, Kurepaz-Mahmoodabadi M. Phytochemistry and pharmacology of berberis species. Pharmacogn Rev. 2014;8(15):8–15. doi:10.4103/0973-7847.125517</ref> The safety of using berberine for any condition is not adequately defined by [[evidence-based medicine|high-quality clinical research]].<ref name="mlp19">{{cite web |date=22 February 2024 |title=Berberine |url=https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/natural/1126.html |access-date=31 July 2024 |website=Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database Consumer Version |publisher=MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine, US National Institutes of Health}}</ref> Its potential for causing [[adverse effect]]s is high, including untoward interactions with [[prescription drug]]s, reducing the intended effect of established therapies.<ref name=mlp19/> It is particularly unsafe for use in children.<ref name=mlp19/>

=== Other uses ===
Historically, yellow dye was extracted from the stem, root, and bark.<ref>{{cite encyclopaedia|first=C.|last=Tomlinson|chapter=''Berberis''|title=[[Tomlinson's Cyclopaedia of Useful Arts]]|year=1866|publisher=Virtue & Co.|location=London|volume=I|page=97 }}</ref>

The thorns of the barberry shrub have been used to clean ancient gold coins, as they are soft enough that they will not damage the surface but will remove corrosion and debris.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Weiss|first=Daniel|date=July–August 2017|title=From the Trenches|journal=Archaeology|volume=70|number=4|pages=9–22 |jstor=26348971 }}</ref>

The acidic young leaves are sometimes chewed for refreshment by parched hikers.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Angier|first=Bradford|url=https://archive.org/details/fieldguidetoedib00angi/page/28/mode/2up|title=Field Guide to Edible Wild Plants|publisher=Stackpole Books|year=1974|isbn=0-8117-0616-8|location=Harrisburg, PA|page=28|oclc=799792|author-link=Bradford Angier }}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Berberis-aggregata.JPG|''[[Berberis aggregata]]'' fruit
File:BerberisAculeata.jpg|''[[Berberis aristata|B. aristata]]'', from the [[Himalayas]]
File:Berberis gagnepainii thorn.jpg|''[[Berberis gagnepainii|B. gagnepainii]]'' with {{convert|20|mm|abbr=on|adj=on|frac=8}} thorn-leaves 
File:Berberis gagnepainii flowers.jpg|''[[Berberis gagnepainii|B. gagnepainii]]'', flowers, {{convert|7|mm|in|abbr=on|frac=8}} wide
File:Berberis gagnepainii fruit.jpg|''[[Berberis gagnepainii|B. gagnepainii]]'', fruit
File:Berberis-thunbergii.JPG|''[[Berberis thunbergii|B. thunbergii]]'' shrub
File:Berberis valdiviana 120502-2.jpg|''[[Berberis valdiviana|B. valdiviana]]'', flowers from [[Chile]] (cultivated in the UK)
File:Berberis verruculosa leaves.jpg|''[[Berberis verruculosa|B. verruculosa]]'', upper side of shoot above, lower side below
File:Berberis-vulgaris-flowers.jpg|''[[Berberis vulgaris|B. vulgaris]]'' flowers and foliage, cultivated in [[Denmark]]
File:Berberis prattii1.jpg|''[[Berberis prattii|B. prattii]]'' fruit
File:Barberry blossom in Eastern Siberia.jpg|Barberry blossom in Eastern Siberia
</gallery>

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}
{{Refbegin}}
<!-- add references below -->
* {{Cite web|last=Arellano|first=Gustavo|title=Naan & Kabob|work=Orange County Weekly|date=2004-03-18|url=http://www.ocweekly.com/columns/this-hole-in-the-wall-life/naan-kabob/15514/|access-date=2007-05-02|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010051807/http://www.ocweekly.com/columns/this-hole-in-the-wall-life/naan-kabob/15514/|archive-date=2007-10-10}}
* {{Cite web|last=Murrills|first=Angela|title=Best Eating: Check, please|publisher=Straight.com|date=2005-11-24|url=https://www.straight.com/node/10692|access-date=2007-05-02}}
* [http://www.rnzih.org.nz/pages/berberisglaucocarpa.htm Royal New Zealand Institute of horticulture.  ''Berberis glaucocarpa'']
* {{Cite news|last=Wilkinson|first=Bobbie|author2=Tom Wilkinson|title=It's an Adventure in Persian Cuisine at Darya Kabob|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|date=2004-08-15|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2004/08/15/its-an-adventure-in-persian-cuisine-at-darya-kabob/64c44388-9b58-4cd6-bd14-ef0957160461/ |access-date=2007-05-02}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
{{Wikispecies}}
{{Wikisource1911Enc|Barberry}}
{{Cookbook|Barberry}}

{{Berberidaceae genera}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q158503}}

[[Category:Berberis| ]]
[[Category:Berberidaceae genera]]
[[Category:Berries]]
[[Category:CYP3A4 inhibitors]]
[[Category:Medicinal plants]]
[[Category:Plants used in bonsai]]
[[Category:Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus]]