The Berries Gallery:
Berries portrait of
Berberis thunbergii "Atropurpurea"
Red Japanese Barberry
Japanese Red Barberry berries are very tiny, & one must
look closely to spot them amidst & under the purple &
red leaves. This photo shows the berries on the first day of
September. As autumn progresses, the deciduous leaves will
get redder & redder, then fall from the thorny branches
leaving behind the tiny berries, which will cling decoratively
through much of winter & sometimes into early spring.
in close-up which shows them larger than life size
The berries are too small to attempt to eat, but I tasted a couple
anyway. They're awful. By spring the berries seem to have
"hollowed out" though I sure can't tell how seeds get out; the
berries will appear outwardly unchanged, perhaps a tiny bit
faded, but if you squeeze the little things in spring,
they're like teency empty red balloons.
To see this shrub in its spectacular fall colors, see the
Japanese Barberry Page of the Autumn Leaves Gallery
For a full article about this shrub, go to the main
Berberis thunbergii "Atropurpurea" Page.
Continue to the Next Page of the Berries Gallery.