Photographed May 2.Photographed May 2.
A foreign invader; it makes a fine hedge, but it is beginning to show up where it is not wanted. The red-leaved form is rarely found in the wild; the one above was growing deep in the woods in Fox Chapel, where it was blooming in early May.
In fall color, photographed November 29.
Fruit in the snow, photographed Christmas day.The National Park Service (in a “least wanted” posting) gives us this description:
Japanese barberry is a dense, deciduous, spiny shrub that grows 2 to 8 ft. high. The branches are brown, deeply grooved, somewhat zig-zag in form and bear a single very sharp spine at each node. The leaves are small (½ to 1 ½ inches long), oval to spatula-shaped, green, bluish-green, or dark reddish purple. Flowering occurs from mid-April to May in the northeastern U.S. Pale yellow flowers about ¼ in (0.6 cm) across hang in umbrella-shaped clusters of 2-4 flowers each along the length of the stem. The fruits are bright red berries about 1/3 in (1 cm) long that are borne on narrow stalks. They mature during late summer and fall and persist through the winter.