Berberis lycium
Family: Berberidaceae
What it is like
Berberis lycium is an evergreen Shrub growing to 3 m (9ft 10in) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 6 and is not frost tender. It is in leaf all year, in flower from May to June. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and can grow in heavy clay and nutritionally poor soils. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.
Height (m): 3
Where it is found
Shrubberies and open hillsides, usually on hot dry slopes, to 3000 metres. in Kashmir.
E. Asia - Himalayas
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Fruit - raw or cooked and made into preserves. Fairly juicy with a nice slightly acid flavour. The fruits are about 8mm long. Leaves and young shoots - cooked. Leaves are a tea substitute.
Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.
Medicine
Rating: 3
The roots are aperient, carminative, febrifuge and ophthalmic. They are used in the treatment of eye complaints, menorrhagia, chronic diarrhoea and piles. The leaves have been used in the treatment of jaundice. Berberine, universally present in rhizomes of Berberis species, has marked antibacterial effects. Since it is not appreciably absorbed by the body, it is used orally in the treatment of various enteric infections, especially bacterial dysentery. It should not be used with Glycyrrhiza species (Liquorice) because this nullifies the effects of the berberine. Berberine has also shown antitumour activity.
Antibacterial: Kills bacteria.
Aperient: A mild laxative.
Cancer: Used in the treatment of cancer.
Carminative: Reduces flatulence and expels gas from the intestines.
Dysentery: Used in treating dysentery - an infection of the intestines that causes diarrhoea containing blood or mucus.
Febrifuge: Reduces fevers.
Ophthalmic: Treats eye complaints.
Other
Rating: 1
A yellow dye is obtained from the root.
Dye: Plants that provide dyes.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
How it is grown
Prefers a warm moist loamy soil and light shade but it is by no means fastidious, succeeding in thin, dry and shallow soils. Grows well in heavy clay soils. A fairly hardy plant but it suffers some damage in severe winters. Hybridizes freely with other members of this genus. Plants can be pruned back quite severely, they resprout well from the base.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame, when it should germinate in late winter or early spring. Seed from over-ripe fruit will take longer to germinate, whilst stored seed may require cold stratification and should be sown in a cold frame as early in the year as possible. The seedlings are subject to damping off, so should be kept well ventilated. When the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame. If growth is sufficient, it can be possible to plant them out into their permanent positions in the autumn, but generally it is best to leave them in the cold frame for the winter and plant them out in late spring or early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth, preferably with a heel, October/November in a frame.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Dappled Shade; Shady Edge;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 5-9
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Dry, moist