Appearance

Growth form

This deciduous shrub grows about 6.5–11.5 ft (2–3.5 m) tall. Pale yellow or gray branches usually carry three-part spines.

Leaves

The papery leaves are 2–4 in (5–10 cm) long and have many fine, spine-tipped teeth along the edge.

Flowers

Ten to 25 yellow flowers hang together in a raceme.

Fruit

The fruit is a red, oblong berry about 0.4 in (10 mm) long.

Look-alikes

Japanese barberryBerberis thunbergii

Amur barberry has finely toothed leaves and racemes of 10–25 flowers. Japanese barberry usually has smooth-edged leaves and flowers that are single or in small, umbrella-like clusters.

Why they get mixed up · Both are thorny, deciduous Asian barberries with yellow flowers and red fruit.

Where it lives

Typical habitats

• mountain thickets
• forest edges
• streambanks

Range

It is native from Mongolia and northern China through Korea, the Russian Far East, and Japan.

Preferred conditions

In its native range it grows in thickets, open forest, valleys, stream edges, and rocky places.

Growing it

Care

For U.S. gardens, it suits hardiness zones 6–9 and full sun to partial shade.

Name and classification

About the name

Berberis vulgaris var. amurensis is an older name for this species.

Conservation

IUCN Red List

NENot Evaluated·Not yet assessed