Barberry Thunberg Atropurpurea - variety description

Barberry Thunberg Atropurpurea occupies one of the leading places in the table of ranks of ornamental plants. Compared to other shrubs of the barberry family, this variety has several undeniable advantages. He, like other varieties of Thunberg barberries, is dressed up and bright, but at the same time it has remarkable growth - an adult plant reaches 4 meters in height! And its life cycle reaches 65 years, so when choosing a bush for a hedge, you should pay attention to this bright giant.

Description of barberry Atropurpurea

Barberry Atropurpurea belongs to the barberry family. This is a beautiful spreading shrub. The branches of the plant have sharp thorns-thorns - these are modified leaves. They retain their purple color almost throughout the season. The color change during the growing season is insignificant, it differs mainly in the saturation of tones. At the beginning of the season, the leaves are bright purple, slightly muted in the middle, and at the end a deep rich tone is added to the color.

Barberry Thunberg Atropurpurea

The homeland of the shrub is the Caucasus region. The plant has great endurance - it easily tolerates heat and moderate frosts. In the middle lane, Atropurpurea barberry is often used by designers in garden compositions to replace the heat-loving boxwood.

The plant is not demanding for the quality of soils; it easily tolerates stony soils and loam. Planting on slightly acidic soils with an acidity of not higher than 7.0 pH is permissible.

The plant is used as an ornamental shrub. Despite the fact that it bears abundant fruit, the red, slightly elongated fruits, unlike other types of barberry, are inedible - they have a bitter-sour taste.

The shrub can be attributed to weakly growing plants only by the age of 5 years, it grows to a height of 2 meters. The crown at the same time reaches 3.5 meters in diameter. Barberry Atropurpurea has standard sizes - a high and spreading crown 4 meters high, and 5-5.5 meters in diameter. The mini version is called the Thunberg barberry Atropurpurea nana - it is a dwarf plant up to 1-1.4 meters high and a small crown.

Young 2-year-old barberry seedlings

The plant is very responsive to sunlight. This must be taken into account when choosing a landing site. It tolerates partial shade relatively well - the main thing is that 2/3 of the day sunlight falls on the bush. When placed in the shade, foliage loses its decorative properties, turns green, and growth quickly slows down.

The plant has been used in landscaping since the 1860s. Common barberry Atropurpurea remains one of the most popular plants for urban landscaping and landscape design today.

Planting a plant

Planting a plant in open ground is carried out in the form of 2-3 year old seedlings or cuttings. Planting seeds and germination in vivo is considered ineffective - seed germination in vivo is 25-30%. Therefore, it is recommended to plant seedlings in a container.

Planting from seeds

In greenhouses, seed cultivation is carried out in containers or in greenhouses. The fruits of the barberry are removed from the tree, peeled and dried for 2-3 days in sunlight. For planting, a substrate of sand, humus, turf soil with a pH of no more than 6.5 is used. Seeds are disinfected for 4-6 hours before planting.Planting depth in the ground is 1-1.5 cm.

After emergence, the film is removed and the soil moisture is controlled. The soil in the container should not be too wet, but it should not dry out either. It is recommended to feed with complex fertilizers and preparations promoting the growth of the root system on days 21-28 after the emergence of seedlings.

Landing in containers is carried out in the second half of February - early March. The hardening procedure begins when the air temperature reaches 10-12 ℃ above zero. Transferring the plant to fresh air after May 15 - when the threat of frost has completely passed. In the second half of September, it is recommended to transplant the plant into a larger container for wintering.

Barberry Atropurpurea in late autumn

Planting seedlings in open ground

For planting in open ground, seedlings of 2-3 years old are used. A place with an abundance of sunlight and a moderate moisture content is considered optimal. An adult plant does not tolerate places with a high level of groundwater, wetlands, lowlands.

When choosing a place, it is taken into account that the Atropurpurea barberry has a large spreading crown. When planting it as a separate plant, the distance to nearby plantings should be at least 3.5-4 meters.

When planting seedlings 2-3 years old, the size of the pit should be 30x30 cm and up to 40 cm in depth. Dolomite flour or lime is necessarily poured to the bottom. The deoxidizer is sprinkled on top with a layer of sand. For backfill it is recommended to use peat, sand, and the top fertile soil layer. The backfill mix is ​​prepared in the following proportion - 2 parts of compost, 2 parts of humus, 3 parts of fertile soil 300-400 grams of superphosphate.

Planting is carried out in early spring, during the period of bud swelling. 10-12 liters of water are poured into the prepared hole, after which a layer of prepared soil 10-12 cm thick is poured. Next, the seedling is installed and the rest of the soil is filled. At the final stage, watering is carried out with 10-12 liters of water.

After planting for 2-3 days, it is recommended to loosen the ground and mulch.

How to care for barberry Atropurpurea

The main secret of getting a beautiful and healthy shrub is the correct choice of planting site, watering, feeding and pruning. And if everything is quite simple with the choice of location, then there are some nuances with the rest of the components.

Using barberry in composition with other plants

Watering

For young plants 3-4 years old, the irrigation regime is set at 1-2 irrigations in 5-7 days in the first year after planting. The next year, you can water less often - once every 7-10 days. For adult plants, watering 2-3 times a month is enough.

Top dressing

After planting, the first feeding is carried out in the spring. For feeding, a urea solution is made, 30 grams of the substance per 10 liters of water. Such feeding is carried out in the future 1 time in 2 years.

Before the beginning of the flowering period, fertilizing is done with manure infusion - 1 kilogram of manure is diluted for 3 liters of water. The procedure is repeated 7-14 days after the end of flowering of the plant.

For late autumn, fertilizing with mineral fertilizers is suitable. The dosage for one adult bush is 15 grams of superphosphate. It is scattered dry under the plants before the autumn rains.

Pruning

Barberry purpurea, when grown as a stand-alone plant, better tolerates pruning in early spring, when the plant is dormant - frozen branches are removed.At the same time, the hedges of the barberry Thunbergii Atropurpurea are trimmed.

Autumn pruning is scheduled for October-November, when all processes slow down and the plant goes into winter mode.

Reproduction methods

Like all barberry shrubs, Atropurpurea propagates by seeds, layering and dividing the bush. True, you need to remember that the last option is very problematic, given the size of the plant. For home breeding, it is preferable to propagate by seeds and layering.

Diseases and pests

The main diseases and pests of barberry Atropurpurea are:

• powdery mildew;
• rust;
• barberry sawer;
• barberry aphid.

Flowering period

The flowering period of the plant mainly falls in the second half of May - early June. Round-shaped yellow flowers collected in a brush bloom for 10-13 days. The inner part of the petals is yellow, the outer part is bright red.

Preparing for winter

According to the description, barberry Atropurpurea easily tolerates winter frosts. But, for the first 2-3 years, it is recommended to cover the bush with spruce branches for the winter.

Use in landscape design

For estates, it is recommended to be used as decorative elements of a Japanese garden, alpine slides or hedges. The mini variety is applicable as a curb plant and for zoning suburban areas.

Beneficial features

Barberry is excellent for hedging, especially where natural protection from noise is needed. The plant has a small growth, only 20-30 cm per year, so the hedge will not require constant pruning.

Barberry Thunberg Atropurpurea has long won the hearts of many gardeners and is rightfully considered one of the favorite plants for decorating plots. In addition, it does not require special agricultural techniques, so even an inexperienced beginner can grow a beautiful plant.