Darwin’s barberry

Berberis darwinii

Evergreen Chilean shrub with small holly-like glossy leaves and pendant clusters of bright orange spring flowers followed by blue-black berries.

Hardiness ratings

Darwin’s barberry hardiness across the four zone systems
SystemRatingTemperature rangeHow to read it
USDA hardiness zone Zone 7–9 −17.8 °C to −1.1 °C Plant tolerates down to this zone
RHS hardiness rating H4 −10 °C to −5 °C Plant needs at least this level of cold tolerance
Canadian plant hardiness zone Zone 7–9 −12 °C and warmer Plant tolerates down to this zone
Australian (ANBG) zone Zone 3–6 −5 °C to 15 °C Plant tolerates down to this zone

Growing notes

  • Dense thorny habit makes excellent safe nesting habitat for small birds
  • Orange spring flowers are outstanding early bee forage
  • Blue-black berries through summer feed thrushes and blackcaps
  • Drought tolerant once established

Categories

Related plants

Cross-check Darwin’s barberry against your zones

Reference

Darwin’s barberry on Wikipedia