Wildflower of the valley
Barberry
Berberis jaeschkeana
- How easy to find
- Rare — you will see it only in some places
- Flower size
- Small
- Family
- Berberidaceae (Barberry family)
- Local name
- Kingor
- Type
- Shrub
- Height
- 2 m
- Flower colour
- yellow
- Flowering
- June to August
About Barberry
Berberis jaeschkeana is an armed shrub up to 2 m tall with stunted, angled branches. Leaves are three to five and early falling. Leaves are obovoid or elliptic-oblong, obtuse at apex. Flowers are bright yellow. Stamens are 5 and opposite to petals. Berries are red when get ripen.
Where to find it
- Near the entrance of the valley
Habitat
In open along the waysides and undergrowth of forests.
Uses & folklore
The plant is used as an astringent. Roots are employed in treatingcuts and wounds, jaundice, menorrhagia, opthalmia, skin diseases and urinary disorders. The plant is known to contain anti bacterial and anti tumor activities.
What the name means
Berberis: possibly from Arabic berberys; jaeschkeana honours Heinrich August Jaeschke, a 19th-century Moravian missionary who compiled a Tibetan dictionary.
Don't confuse it with
B. aristata (sno 104) is the common commercial Daruhaldi; B. jaeschkeana is the higher-altitude sibling.
