Barberry - WEMPlapedia, the wild edible and medicinal plant encyclopedia

Berberis vulgaris

Berberidaceae

Image Provider(s): netherbarium

Edible Uses

Fruit

The dried barberries can be used like raisins in cakes, yogurt or mixed up with cereal. They can also be prepared as a refreshing tea alone or combined with other fruits (rosehip, mint). Fresh fruits have several interesting uses : marmalades, sauces, vinegar, or even liqueur can be prepared of them. Take care during processing, the seeds are bitter, so squeeze carefully the pulp from seeds.

Medicinal Uses

Bark

The bark extract or decoction may be used to treat gall bladder, liver diseases and kidney stones. Do not use homemade preparations because incorrect dosing and drug contain can lead to intoxications!

Fruit

Fruits can be dried or freshly used. Due to its high vitamin C content, high raw berries are immune stimulant and help prevent colds in the winter. The fresh berries, the fresh juice, or even dried fruits prepared as a tea can be used against stomach, intestines and gall-bladder disease, and also against menstrual cramps.

Main Characteristics

1 - 3 m tall deciduous shrub with pendulous, thorny branches. The thorns are grouped by three. The leaves are small, obovate, with prickly serrated margins. The yellow, 6-petaled, bel-shaped flowers are clustered by 6-12 into a hanging spike. Fruits are oblong, dark pink or orange-red, strongly sour berries. They contain 1-2 bitter seeds.

Habitats

Mesic deciduous forest

Shrub forest

Harvesting aid

Bark

April, June, March, May

Bark can be gathered in spring, in a rainy period. Cut some branches, remove leaves and thorns, and then peel off the bark. The largest quantity of the active ingredient is in the root bark. However, the gathering is more elaborate and damages increasingly the plant.

Fruit

October, September

The fully ripe fruits are harvested, unripe fruits contains berberine, which is toxic in larger quantities. The berry clusters can be harvested easily by hand or with scissors, just beware of the thorns. In some berries there are maggots. These berries have a small hole in the middle. During drying, a few berries blacken, you need to throw them out. Before putting the dried berries into a bottle, make sure that they do not contain living maggots any more, as these can damage the whole bottle.

Confusion with other plants

You can meet some bred barberry species in parks or streets. These species do not have any medical or dietary use.

Breberis thunbergii

Japanease barberry

Berberidaceae

The leaf margins are entire or slightly serrated, some varieties have red colored leaves. The fruits are bright red, they are usually smaller and fewer berries are located in a cluster. The berries are not sour, they taste insignificant and therefore it is not worth collecting them.