Berberidaceae FAMILY

Berberis lycium

Edibility

3/5

Medicinal

3/5

Safety & Hazards

All parts of the plant contain the alkaloid berberine - this is most concentrated in the roots, stems and inner bark, and least concentrated in the fruits. In small quantities berberine has a range of effective medicinal applications but, in excess, can cause vomiting, lowered blood pressure, reduced heart rate, lethargy, and other ill-effects. The fruit of most, if not all, members of this genus are more or less edible and can be eaten in quantity since the levels of berberine in the fruit are very low.

Botanical Description

Berberis lycium is a spiny, deciduous to semi-evergreen shrub with a spreading habit; it can grow up to 250cm tall[ 11 Title Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Publication Author Bean. W. Publisher Murray Year 1981 ISBN - Description A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures. ]. Plants up to 4 metres tall are reported in the Himalayas[ 372 Title Flowers of India Publication Author Website http://www.flowersofindia.net/ Publisher Year 0 ISBN Description A wed site of native Indian plants, plus cultivated and naturalized species. It has good quality photos and terse details on more than 3,000 species and cultivars. ]. An important herbal medicine in the Himalayas, the plant is commonly harvested from the wild and is traded in local markets. The fruits and leaves are also harvested for use as a food. The plant is sometimes grown as an ornamental.

Habitat & Origin

Origintemperate

Native RangeE. Asia - Himalayas from Kashmir to Nepal

HabitatShrubberies and open hillsides[ 51 Title Flowers of the Himalayas. Publication Author Polunin. O. and Stainton. A. Publisher Oxford Universtiy Press Year 1984 ISBN - Description A very readable and good pocket guide (if you have a very large pocket!) to many of the wild plants in the Himalayas. Gives many examples of plant uses. , 67 Title Berberis and Mahonia. Publication Author Ahrendt. Publisher Journal of the Linnean Society, 57 Year 1961 ISBN - Description Not for the casual reader, it lists all the known species in these two genera together with botanic descriptions and other relevant details for the botanist. ], usually on hot dry slopes[ 146 Title A Manual of Indian Timbers. Publication Author Gamble. J. S. Publisher Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh Year 1972 ISBN - Description First written in the 19th century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader. ], at elevations up to 3,000 metres. In Kashmir[ 57 Title Plants for Man. Publication Author Schery. R. W. Publisher Year ISBN Description Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world. ].