Japanese barberry (Invasive Plants of South Mountain Reservation)

Japanese barberry

Berberis thunbergii

Summary ⁵

Berberis thunbergii, or Japanese barberry, is a species of flowering plant in the barberry family, Berberidaceae, native to Japan and eastern Asia. It is a deciduous shrub with small spoon-shaped green leaves turning red in the autumn, brilliant red fruits in autumn and pale yellow flowers in spring.

Japanese barberry is widely grown as an ornamental plant both in Japan and elsewhere in the temperate Northern Hemisphere. It can now be found in most northeastern and Great Lakes states of the United States, where it is considered an invasive species. It is avoided by deer, which has helped it start replacing native species. In addition, the plant can raise the pH of the soil and affect soil nitrogen levels.

Japanese barberry also provides an exceptionally favorable environment for ticks due to the high humidity present in barberry's dense foliage. It is hypothesized that spread of barberry is correlated with the spread of Lyme disease. Tick numbers are higher in areas with thick barberry understories, as opposed to areas with controlled barberry or no barberry.

Sources and Credits

(c) Brian Gratwicke, some rights reserved (CC BY), http://www.flickr.com/photos/briangratwicke/8716298099/
(c) Rob Curtis, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Rob Curtis
(c) F. D. Richards, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://www.flickr.com/photos/50697352@N00/41554940674/
(c) mayessj, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by mayessj
Adapted by Tom Pollard from a work by (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berberis_thunbergii

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