Oregon Grape, Berberis nervosa

About Oregon Grape (Berberis nervosa) 20 Nurseries Carry This Plant

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Berberis nervosa commonly known as dwarf Oregon-grape, Cascade Oregon-grape, or dull Oregon-grape, is a flowering plant native to the northwest coast of North America from southern British Columbia south to central California, with an isolated population inland in northern Idaho. It is especially common in second growth, Douglas-fir or Western Redcedar forests, making use of those pools of sunlight that intermittently reach the ground.The plant was collected by Lewis and Clark during their famous expedition to the West before being described for science in 1813.

It is an evergreen shrub with short vertical stems, mostly under 30 cm (12 in), while the leaves reach higher, rarely up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) tall. The leaves are compound, with 9-19 leaflets; each leaflet is strongly toothed, reminiscent of holly, and somewhat shiny, but less so than tall Oregon-grape. The leaflets do not have a single central vein as in that species, but several veins arranged fan-like, branched from the leaflet base, hence the epithet nervosa. The flowers and fruit are like those of other Oregon-grapes, and are equally bitter-tasting. Some Plateau Indian tribes drank an infusion of the root to treat rheumatism.

Plant Description

Plant Type

Shrub

Size

1 - 7 ft tall
7 ft wide

Dormancy

Evergreen

Flower Color

Yellow

Flowering Season

Spring

Wildlife Supported

Butterflies & moths hosted ( 5 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Tissue Moth Triphosa haesitataTriphosa haesitata

Barberry Geometer Coryphista meadiiCoryphista meadii

Fall Webworm Hyphantria cuneaHyphantria cunea

Orange Tortrix Moth Argyrotaenia franciscanaArgyrotaenia franciscana

Mesogona olivataMesogona olivata

Landscaping Information

Sun

Part Shade

Moisture

Low

Summer Irrigation

Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries

Carried by 20

Cold Tolerance

Tolerates cold to -15° F

Soil Drainage

Fast

Soil Description

Prefers well drained acidic soil. Soil PH: 4.0 - 7.0

Common uses

Bank Stabilization, Hedges, Deer Resistant, Bird Gardens, Bee Gardens

Companion Plants

Use with other plants of the north coast such as:
Trees - Redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), Grand Fir (Abies grandi), Maple (Acer sp.), Alder (Alnus sp.), Dogwood (Cornus sp.), Ninebark (Physocarpus capitatus), Pines (Pinus sp.), Willow (Salix sp.), Coast Silktassel (Garrya elliptica), Tanoak (Notholithocarpus densiflorus), Douglas Fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii), Oak (Quercus garryana or kelloggii)

Other companions: Stream Orchid (Epipactis gigantea), Bog Orchid (Platanthera sp.), Oceanspray (Holodicsus discolor), Lily (Lilium sp.), Seep Monkeyflower (Mimulus guttatus), Buttercup (Ranunculus sp.), Gooseberry (Ribes sp.), Yellow-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium californicum), Hedgenettle (Stachys sp.)

Propagation?

For propagating by seed: 3-7 mos. stratification may give satisfactory germination. The following alternative treatment improve germination: 30 days cold, 60 days warm, and 196 days cold stratification. During this last period, remove and pot germinating seeds bimonthly. Some additional germination will occur after the remaining seeds are sown, preferably in a cool location, i.e. outdoors in early spring (McLean 1967). It has been suggested that Berberis nervosa and Berberis pumila need No treatment. if the seeds are kept moist from the time they are cleaned until sown; they should be stored moist (stratified) for 7 mos. in the refrige rator for spring sowing (Eugene Baciu, personal communication 1964).

Sunset Zones?

2, 3, 4*, 5*, 6*, 7*, 8, 9, 10, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

Natural Setting

Site Type

Shady canyons and north-facing slopes primarily along the coast from Monterey County northward

Climate

Annual Precipitation: 17.0" - 145.8", Summer Precipitation: 0.22" - 5.58", Coldest Month: 29.4" - 49.4", Hottest Month: 47.3" - 74.2", Humidity: 0.01" - 23.31", Elevation: 20" - 8906"

Alternative Names

Botanical Names: Mahonia nervosa

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Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links: Jepson eFlora Taxon Page CalPhotos Wikipedia Calflora

Oregon Grape

Berberis nervosa

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Oregon GrapeBerberis nervosa

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Oregon Grape

Berberis nervosa