Plant: Crimson Pygmy - Barberry
Barberry · Berberis thunbergii 'Crimson Pygmy'
Size: 1 gal
Light
Bloom
Mature size
More about this plant
The most popular dwarf Japanese barberry, a dense arching mound only 1 to 3 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide, clothed in deep crimson leaves with a bronze tinge that brighten to orange and red burgundy in fall. Waxy pale yellow to orange red flowers open in April and May and are followed by small red oval berries that persist into winter and feed birds. It is low maintenance and adaptable, taking clay, loam or sand at almost any pH, and resists deer, drought, heat, salt and urban conditions. Note that this cultivar and its parent are both recorded as invasive species in North Carolina, and the stems carry thorns.
- Full Sun
- Grows to 3 ft tall and 4 ft wide
- Blooms in spring
- Hardy in USDA zones 4a-9b
- Deciduous foliage
Plant description
The most popular dwarf Japanese barberry, a dense arching mound only 1 to 3 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide, clothed in deep crimson leaves with a bronze tinge that brighten to orange and red burgundy in fall. Waxy pale yellow to orange red flowers open in April and May and are followed by small red oval berries that persist into winter and feed birds. It is low maintenance and adaptable, taking clay, loam or sand at almost any pH, and resists deer, drought, heat, salt and urban conditions. Note that this cultivar and its parent are both recorded as invasive species in North Carolina, and the stems carry thorns.
- Flowers
- Waxy pale yellow to orange to red flowers that bloom in April and May.
- Foliage
- Alternate, simple, deep crimson leaves with a bronze tinge, half to seven tenths of an inch long.
- Fruit
- Red oval berries about a fifth of an inch across appearing in summer and persisting into winter, attracting birds.
- Bark & stems
- Some stems are brittle and thorns are attached to the stem.
- Light
- Dappled/Filtered Light
- Native range
- Asia (Japan)
