Also called Thunberg's barberry and red barberry.

Part of barberry  family Berberidaceae in barberry/​buttercup/​poppy  order Ranunculales.

Native to eastern Asia.   🗺 Map by county (🇺🇸 USA-48) (color key).   Invasive > learn+quiz Invasive > 🌐︎ global Invasive > 🇨🇦 🇺🇸 Canada+USA Invasive > report it! Invasive > 🇺🇸 USA Invasive > Michigan

🚼︎ For kids!  This plant described in invasive species placemat  Adobe Acrobat Reader file series.   Nice drawing.  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (page 38)

Uses by native peoples
(Ethnobotany database)   On No-Planting List by Seneca Nation of Indians SNI.  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (pages 58 and 60)

In areas where Japanese barberry is invasive, it promotes in 👥︎ humans the terrible and difficult-to-treat ⚕︎ Lyme disease, for reasons having something to do with disease vectors 🦌︎ deer  family Cervidae, 🐭︎ white-footed deer mouse  Peromyscus leucopus and black-legged deer tick  genus Ixodes, bringing the victim the ☣ disease-causing agent 🦠 Lyme disease bacterium  genus Borrelia. [1]

Ticks and ⚕︎ tick-borne diseases (🇺🇸 USA CDC).

🇺🇸 In the USA, the USDA suggests those seeking a shrub with nice fruit replace this plant with native alternatives 🍓︎ strawberry bush  Euonymus americanus, wax-myrtle  Myrica cerifera, meadowsweet  Spiraea latifolia or mapleleaf viburnum  Viburnum acerifolium. [2]

And the Lehigh Gap Nature Center suggests those seeking scented flowers and nice 🍃︎ autumn color replace this plant with native alternative Virginia sweetspire  Itea virginica. [3]  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (pages 4 and 38)

Native alternatives (Great Lakes green entries).  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (page 3)

More native alternatives (Missouri Botanical Garden).

Native alternatives (Pennsylvania).  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (page 3)

And a buddy of ours JG recommends alternative pricklyash  Zanthoxylum americanum.

Learn more about Japanese barberry Berberis thunbergii

Treatment methods and timing (40–45°N lat.)  Adobe Acrobat Reader file Management and Control (Wisconsin)  Adobe Acrobat Reader file Best Control Practices BCP (Michigan)  Adobe Acrobat Reader file Control and Alternatives (Maryland).  Adobe Acrobat Reader file (page 4)   I have also heard of controlling this plant using ⚶🐐︎ prescribed browsing / goatscaping.

🔍︎ 🔍︎ images Discover Life Encyclopedia of Life Michigan Flora Missouri Botanical Garden Flora of North America USDA PLANTS db USFS Wikipedia

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