Amur barberry is a shrub of the Barberry family, one of the species of the genus Barberry. Not everyone knows what this plant is. Description and photo of the Amur barberry is contained in this article.
Territory of distribution
In the wild, Amur barberry grows in the Primorsky Territory and the southern part of the Khabarovsk Territory, in the eastern regions of China, Korea, and partially in Japan. The name was given due to the description from the Amur River Valley.
It prefers broad-leaved, broad-leaved-cedar and cedar-spruce forests, forest edges, banks of mountain rivers, river terraces, bushes, dry stony and gravelly slopes. Very fond of humus-rich soils. Barberries do not grow in continuous thickets.
The plant itself is winter-hardy, drought-resistant and heat-resistant, so gardeners successfully cultivate it throughout Russia.
Amur barberry: variety description
Barberry is a small-branched thorny bush. Its height is up to 3.5 meters. Shrub with straight, slightly branched, upright and ribbed branches that change color from yellow to gray by autumn.
The kidneys of the Amur barberry are red or brown in color, up to 1.5 mm long, pungent. Leaves are arranged next, leaf shape is elliptical or obovate, leaf length is 12 cm, width is 5 cm. The leaves themselves are webbed, the edges are finely barbed. The color of the leaves varies: from dull light green to purple, dark red. Leaves grow mainly in bunches on shortened shoots.
The thorns of the Amur barberry are yellowish, as a rule, are tripartite, reaching 3 cm in length. One-year shoots of shoots often have 4-5 or 7 separate spines of cylindrical or thickened and flat shape.
The inflorescences of the shrub are racemose, in length - up to 10 cm, in inflorescence from 10 to 25 flowers. The flowers themselves are hanging on long pedicels (about 1 cm), the color is pale yellow, they have a strong aroma. Six sepals obovate. There are also six petals and stamens. Amur barberry shrub blooms in May-June, flowering time is up to 20 days.
The berries in barberry are dry, ellipsoidal, about 1 cm long, the color is bright red, tastes sour. The seed is ovoid in shape, 4-5 mm long. In 1 kg, there are approximately 6200 fruits. The fruiting time of the shrub is August-October.
Summing up the description of the Amur barberry, we can say that today this plant is quite popular. Due to the beautiful shape of the bush, large leaves, abundant flowering and fruiting, both single and group plantings, as well as hedges, are recommended.
Billet
Amur barberry is very often used for medicinal purposes. Harvest the leaves, fruits, bark and roots of the plant.
Harvesting of leaves occurs in May-June, when the barberry blossoms. Leaflets can be cut with scissors or simply torn off. Then they are dried, laying out on paper or on cloth in a ventilated place (in the attic or under a canopy). After the leaves have dried, they turn dark green above and light green below. They themselves will be thin, brittle, twisted, with a peculiar smell and slightly acidic taste. For storage, dry, well-ventilated rooms are suitable. Leaves are stored, usually 1-1.5 years.
Harvesting of roots occurs in the fall (October-November) or in the spring (April). They need to be dug with a shovel, shaken off the ground, cut off small roots and air dried. You do not need to wash them in order to preserve the healing properties. Dried roots need to be cut into 1.5-2 cm and dry well. For this, a canopy or attic, as well as a dryer or oven, are suitable. Well-dried roots have longitudinal wrinkles, inside the lemon yellow, brown on the outside, with a faint smell and a bitter taste.
The entire root system of the bush is not used, as a rule, they leave a stalk of 10-15 cm. For thick roots (diameter more than 6 cm), only bark and a small amount of core are used.
Dried roots are packed in bags and stored for up to 3 years.
Harvesting of bark occurs in the spring (April-May), when sap flow begins. Only young branches are suitable for this, which are cut across the entire diameter after 10-15 cm, then cut along and remove the bark. Dry it as well as the roots. When dried, the bark looks like tubes or grooves with wood residues on the inner surface. The color of the dried bark is yellowish-gray inside and gray or brownish-yellow outside, with a weak specific smell and bitter taste. It can be stored up to 3 years.
Harvesting occurs after full ripening in late autumn, when the first frosts pass. You can dry them in the sun, under a canopy or in the oven.
Chemical composition and pharmacological properties
Amur barberry is rich in alkaloids, berberine, palmitin, etc. The bark and roots are rich in berberine, oxyacanthine, alkaloids, tannins, dyes, and resinous substances.
The fruits of barberry are rich in sugars, carotene, vitamin K, ascorbic, citric, tartaric, malic acid, alkaloids, tannins, pectins, dyes, and mineral salts. The leaves are rich in tannins, tarry substances, essential oils, vitamin C, malic acid, carotene, filoquinone.
Barberry preparations have anti-inflammatory, choleretic, diuretic, antimicrobial, astringent, hemostatic and antiseptic properties. With the help of berberine, which is part of barberry, they lower blood pressure, slow down the pulse during tachycardia, and increase the outflow of bile.
Amur barberry is widely used in medicine. They treat chronic diseases of the liver and gall bladder, peptic ulcer of the stomach and duodenum, inflammation of the upper respiratory tract and tuberculosis. With the help of barberry, diarrhea, dysentery, asthma can be cured. Tincture of barberry stops uterine bleeding in the postpartum period.
Landing and care
Amur barberry is not picky about the soil, is not afraid of strong winds, tolerates drought well, does not like only waterlogging. The plant is photophilous, but will grow well in partial shade. There is only one feature: if you grow bushes in direct sunlight, the color of the leaves will be saturated purple; in shrubs growing in partial shade, green color will be present in the leaves.
In single plantings, the distance between plants should be approximately 1.5-2 meters. Making a freely growing hedge, plant two bushes of barberry per 1 meter. If you need a dense hedge, then 4 bushes per 1 meter.
The plant grows well in both acidic and neutral soil, although it prefers neutral.
The soil mixture for planting is prepared from garden soil, humus and sand in equal proportions. If the soil is still acidic, then liming is recommended.
You can feed the plant in the second year after planting. In spring, this is done with the help of nitrogen fertilizers. After this, you need to feed 1 time in 3 years with complex fertilizers with microelements. Barberry is watered once a week. Also, the plant loves weeding and frequent loosening.
Trimming barberries annually is carried out - weak, poorly developed shoots are removed. In spring, it is advisable to thin out old bushes. Forming hedges, pruning is carried out in the second year after planting, while cutting off about half of the aboveground part. After this, pruning is done 2 times a year: in June and in August.
Diseases and Pests
Amur barberry is affected by the following pests:
- Barberry aphids - while the leaves are wrinkled and dry. A solution of laundry soap (300 grams of soap per bucket of water) helps to get rid of it. Sprayed in the spring.
- Flower moth - these caterpillars eat the fruit. Get rid of it helps "Decis" (0.05-0.01%) or "Chlorophos" (0.1-0.3%).
Of the diseases, powdery mildew can be noted. It manifests itself as a powdery coating on the leaves, shoots and fruits.
A solution of colloidal sulfur (0.5%), a sulfur-lime mixture or sulfur-lime broth helps to get rid of it. The first time they are sprayed when the leaves are blooming, then once every 2-3 weeks. Heavily affected shoots must be removed and burned.
Barberry of this variety is less affected by rust than other types of barberry.
Propagation and cultivation of Amur barberry
The plant propagates by dividing the bush, roots, cuttings and seeds. Everything is clear with the first, consider growing Amur barberry from seeds.
The seeds are sown, usually in the fall. Squeeze freshly picked berries, sift through a sieve, rinse and lightly dry.
Sowing itself is carried out in previously prepared grooves to a depth of not more than 1 cm. The soil for growing Amur barberry should be loose and fertile, and the site should be open and well lit. In early summer, the seeds germinate together. When two true leaves appear, seedlings need to be thinned out, leaving a distance of about 3 cm between them. After this, it is better not to transplant the seedlings, replanting is possible after two years.
Use of barberry
The use of Amur barberry is multifaceted. In addition to its medicinal properties, hedges and borders are formed from barberry bushes . These shrubs are perfectly suited to the conditions of central Russia. The hedges of them are impervious. They can be easily cut, giving the bushes any shape. Barberry is suitable for both solitary and group plantings, for growing in rock gardens and as a groundcover.
Varieties
The most popular varieties of Amur barberry are Orpheus and Yaponika.
Orpheus is a compact small bushes. It has bright leaves and it does not bloom.
Japan has wide leaves and long yellow inflorescences drooping in the form of a brush. Thanks to this, the plant is very beautiful.