Japanese barberry
Berberis thunbergii
USDA zones4 to 8
SunHandles full sun to partial sun
WaterHandles dry to moist soil
Size3 to 6 feet tall4 to 7 feet wide
- Growth rate
- Moderate
- Habit
- Dense
- Bloom season
- Spring, summer, autumn, winter
- Bloom color
- Yellow
- Foliage color
- Gold/yellow, green, purple/lavender, variegated
- Fall color
- Yes
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay, chalk
- Soil pH
- Acid, alkaline, neutral
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii) is a shrub for borders, hedges, and low maintenance gardens. It is hardy to USDA zone 4, or down to -30°F (-34°C). This plant likes full or part sun and dry to moist soil of most types. Deer tend to browse other plants first. It grows dense and moderately fast, and its leaves turn color in fall. Bees and birds visit it.
Pairs well with Flowering quince, False indigo, and Common milkweed.
Native range
Japan.