Berberis thunbergii f. 'Atropurpurea Nana' - 7.5Litre

This Berberis, much like most Berberis, is a fantastically thorny plant. As beautiful as it is, it is definitely one to approach with care and preferably while wearing gauntlets! I like to plant them in places I don't particularly want people to access. Blog post on traditional house defence plants to follow...

A vigorous shrub with arching branches carrying rich red foliage, occasionally mottled with green when young before deepening to plum-red as the season progresses. The flowers are an unassuming yellow in spring, followed by bright red berries in autumn.

Note from Hannah: Berberis berries, known as barberries, are extremely popular in Middle Eastern and North African cooking. Whilst this is a particularly spiky variety, the berries are surprisingly easy to collect as they hang beneath the branches. In fact, my small children help me pick ours every year (their little hands are particularly good at avoiding the thorns!) and absolutely love them, finding them far more flavoursome than raisins.

Leaf colour: Red

Type: Deciduous

Aspect: Full sun or partial shade

Soil type: Sand, clay, chalk or loam

Pot size: 10 litre

 

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