Berberis thunbergii "Rose Glow", 12 cm pot

• Type: Japanese barberry
• Latin name: Berberis thunbergii
• Cultivar: Rose Glow
• Mature height: 1–1.2 m (up to 1.5 m)
• Width: 1.2–1.5 m
• Leaves: flame red marbled with carmine pink
• Pot: 12 cm
• Light: sunny
• Winter hardiness: USDA 4–8

Planting Plant in spring (late April – May) or autumn (September) in a sunny or partly shaded spot with fertile, well-drained soil; wet spots with standing water are unsuitable. Dig a hole twice as wide as the pot, mix the excavated soil with compost, set the plant at the same depth it grew in the pot and water generously. Space plants 0.5–1 m (40–50 cm in a hedge) apart.

Watering Water a young plant regularly for the first two years and more often in dry spells; an established shrub is fairly drought-tolerant and needs watering only in long dry periods. Mulch the soil with bark or wood chips.

Pruning Prune in spring before bud break: remove dead and frost-damaged branches and shape the shrub or hedge if desired. Wear thick gloves – barberry has thorns.

Feeding and winter care Feed in spring with compost or an organic fertiliser and, if needed, with a complex fertiliser in spring – early summer; give no nitrogen in autumn. The shrub is hardy in Estonia; protect a young plant in its first winter with mulch and spruce boughs if needed.