Berberis haematocarpa facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Berberis haematocarpa |
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| Berberis haematocarpa shoot | |
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| Berberis haematocarpa flower | |
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Berberis
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| Species: |
haematocarpa
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| Synonyms | |
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Mahonia haematocarpa (Woot.) Fedde |
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The Red Barberry (scientific name: Berberis haematocarpa) is a cool plant found in the southwestern parts of North America. People also call it the red Mexican barberry, Colorado barberry, or just Mexican barberry. It belongs to the Barberry family. Sometimes, it's even called "algerita," but that name usually refers to a different, related plant.
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Where the Red Barberry Grows
This shrub loves to grow in the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. You can find it in mountains, on rocky slopes, and in canyons. It grows at elevations from about 900–2,300 metres (3,000–7,500 ft) high.
It likes Pinyon–juniper woodlands, grasslands, and desert areas called chaparral. You can spot it on hills and flat-topped mountains in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, and Sonora. It also grows in special "sky island" places in the Mojave Desert in California and southwestern Nevada.
What the Red Barberry Looks Like
The Red Barberry is a shrub that can grow quite tall, reaching up to 3–4 m (9.8–13.1 ft) high. It has strong, straight branches.
Its leaves are thick and stiff, several centimeters long. Each leaf is made of 3 to 7 smaller, lance-shaped leaflets. These leaflets have very spiny, toothed edges. They look a bit whitish-gray because they have a thick, waxy coating.
The plant produces clusters of 3 to 5 bright yellow flowers. Each flower has nine sepals and six petals, all arranged in groups of three. The Red Barberry blooms from February all the way to June.
After the flowers, the plant grows juicy, edible berries. These berries are deep red to purplish-red and are round, about 8 mm (0.31 in) across.
Its Scientific Name
Because of its special compound leaves, this plant is sometimes put into a different group called Mahonia. In that case, its scientific name would be Mahonia haematocarpa.
How People Use Red Barberry
Long ago, Apache people used the Red Barberry in many ways. They would shave the wood to make a yellow dye. They also used it as a traditional medicine for eyes. The fresh and preserved fruit was an important food source for them.
