Golden Abundance Oregon Grape is a hybrid cultivar of 3 California native Berberis species that was selected for garden use. It is a dense evergreen shrub, with large compound glossy dark green leaves. It grows 5-8 feet tall by 6-8 feet wide, and can slowly spread by underground rhizomes to form plants 10 ft. wide. The plant produces large inflorescences with abundant yellow flowers in late winter to mid-spring. The flowers are followed by numerous drooping racemes of powdery purple-blue berries that are attractive to birds when they mature in late summer through fall.

Golden Abundance Oregon Grape is used as a flowering accent plant, an informal or trimmed semi-formal hedge, a screen, or a background plant in shady and woodland gardens. Since the leaves have prickly edges it can also be used as a barrier hedge to hinder animals and humans.

In coastal locations it prefers full sun to light shade. In inland locations it prefers partial shade or morning sun with afternoon shade. It can handle heat and aridity well when grown in partial shade. This plant is adaptable to many soil types from well-draining loam to clay loam. It prefers little to moderate watering when established, depending on the sun exposure and climate. It is resistant to oak root fungus and can be a drought tolerant option under mature oaks.

This 'Golden Abundance' cultivar was selected by Lee Lenz at Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden (present day California Botanic Garden), a chance hybrid between 3 different Berberis (classified as Mahonia at the time) species, Mahonia piperiana, M. aquifolium, and M. amplectans. Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden was awarded a patent on it in 1973, the first patent on a cultivated plant selection granted to a botanic garden in California.

Lenz described its distinctions from its three parents as having: a more vigorous and upright form, many lateral inflorescences along the stems, larger terminal inflorescences, and a greater overall visual abundance of flowers.

Tolerates almost any soil type. Prefers sun or part shade in coastal sites, and part shade or shade in inland sites. Selection made by suncrest Nurseries. possible hybrid of B. pinnata and B. aquifolium.

Tall Oregon grape (Berberis aquifolium) is an evergreen shrub known for its early spring blooms and colorful foliage. Clusters of bright yellow flowers appear before most other shrubs, adding a burst of color to gardens and natural landscapes. Its dark green, holly-shaped leaves stay vibrant year-round, often turning shades of purple, red, or orange in fall and winter. The plant gets its name from its dark, dusty blue berries, which resemble grapes. However, Oregon grape is not related to true grapes and belongs to the Berberidaceae family.

The berries are edible and a favorite of birds, providing a valuable food source for wildlife. This hardy shrub is well-suited for shady areas, commonly used as a hedge, foundation plant, or natural screen. Its drought tolerance and ability to stabilize soil make it useful for erosion control in restoration projects. In gardens, it works well in native landscaping and provides shelter and food for pollinators, birds, and small mammals.

There are three recognized varieties of tall Oregon grape in the wild. Berberis aquifolium var. aquifolium is the most common tall form, while var. repens is a low-growing, creeping variety often used as ground cover. Although generally safe, the roots of some Berberis species contain alkaloids that may be mildly toxic if consumed in large amounts. 

With its vibrant flowers, attractive foliage, and wildlife value, tall Oregon grape is a versatile option for native gardens and natural landscapes. It adds year-round beauty while supporting local ecosystems.

Shining Netvein Barberry (Berberis aquifolium var. dictyota) is a native shrub that grows in northern, southern and central California. It tends to grow in slopes and canyons, at elevations from 2000-6000 feet.

Dwarf Mahonia (Berberis aquifolium var. repens) is a native plant, growing in the mountains and foothills of the northern part of California. It enjoys dry shade below 700 ft. It can be found as far north as SE Alaska and eastern Alberta to central New Mexico. Outside its native range it qualifies as invasive. Dense yellow clusters of flowers give way to round dusty dark purple-blue berries, hence the common name Oregon Grape. The edible berries can be used to make wine and purple dye. Some sources describe it as toxic, however. The inner stem gives a yellow dye.

Dwarf Mahonia is very drought tolerant, and very easy to grow, but it looks better with a little bit of summer water.

Tolerates almost any soil type. Prefers part shade or shade in coastal sites, and shade in inland sites. Selected for the garden. Grows well in dry, dappled shade under oak trees. Berries are non-toxic to dogs and cats.

Mahonia fremontii (syn. Berberis fremontii) is a species of barberry known by the common name Frémont's mahonia (after John C. Frémont). Mahonia fremontii is native to mountainous regions of the US states of Arizona, Nevada, California, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. It reaches a height of up to 3 m, and has pinnate leaves of 3-9 leaflets. Flowers are pale yellow, fruits ellipsoid and dull reddish-purple. The plant was named in honor of John C. Fremont. Mahonia fremontii is an erect evergreen shrub growing up to 4. 5 meters tall. The leaves are several centimeters long and are made up of several holly-leaf-shaped leaflets, each about 2 centimeters long and edged with spiny teeth. The leaves are purplish when new, green when mature, and greenish blue when aged. The abundant inflorescences each bear 8 to 12 bright yellow flowers, blooming generally in the spring but sometimes in the fall. Each flower is made up of nine sepals and six petals all arranged in whorls of three. The fruit is a berry up to 1. 5 centimeters wide, ranging in color from yellowish to purple to nearly black. Uses. The Zuni people use the crushed berries as a purple coloring for the skin and for objects employed in ceremonies.

Berberis haematocarpa, Woot. with the common names red barberry, Colorado barberry, and Mexican barberry, is a species in the Barberry family in southwestern North America. It is also sometimes called algerita, but that name is more often applied to its relative, Mahonia trifoliolata. The shrub is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico at elevations of 900-2,300 metres (3,000-7,500 ft). It grows on rocky slopes and canyons of mountains, in Pinyon-juniper woodlands, grasslands, and desert chaparral. It is found on slopes and mesas in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, and Sonora. It is also native to sky island habitats of the Mojave Desert in California and southwestern Nevada. Berberis haematocarpa is a shrub growing up to 3-4 metres (9. 8-13. 1 ft) tall, with stiff and erect branches. It has thick, rigid pinnate leaves of several centimeters long. Each is made up of a few thick 3-7 lance-shaped leaflets with very spiny toothed edges. They are a glaucus whitish-gray in color, due to a thick cuticle of wax. The inflorescences bear 3 to 5 bright yellow flowers, each with nine sepals and six petals all arranged in whorls of three. The plant blooms from February to June. The fruit is a juicy, edible deep red to purplish-red berry, spherical and up to 8 mm across. Taxonomy. The compound leaves place this species in the group sometimes segregated as the genus Mahonia, and classified as Mahonia haematocarpa. Uses. Native Americans of the Apache tribe used the plant's wood shavings for a yellow dye and as a traditional eye medicine, and it's fresh and preserved fruit for food.

Berberis harrisoniana (syn: Mahonia harrisoniana) is a rare species of flowering plant in the barberry family, Berberidaceae. It is known by the common names Kofa barberry, Kofa Mountain barberry, Harrison's barberry, and red barberry. It native to the southwestern United States, where it occurs in the Sonoran Colorado Desert in far eastern San Bernardino County in southeastern California and in the Sonoran Desert region in southwestern Arizona (Yuma, La Paz, Pima and Maricopa Counties). This plant is a rounded shrub usually growing up to 1. 5 meters tall, sometimes reaching 2 meters. The leaves are trifoliate, with three spine-tipped leaflets each a few centimeters long. The inflorescence is a dense cluster of up to 11 flowers. Each bright yellow flower has 9 sepals. The fruit is a juicy blue-black berry about half a centimeter wide. The compound leaves place this species in the group sometimes segregated as the genus Mahonia.

Berberis higginsiae is a shrub found only in a small region south and east of San Diego in southern California and northern Baja California. It grows in chaparral and woodland areas at elevations of 800-1,200 m (2,600-3,900 ft). Berberis higginsiae is evergreen, with thick, stiff compound leaves. It sometimes reaches a height of up to 3 m (9. 8 ft). It is similar to B. fremontii and B. haematocarpa but with narrower leaflets and yellowish-red berries.

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.

Nevin’s barberry (Berberis nevinii) is a striking evergreen flowering shrub. Nevin’s barberry  with bright yellow flowers that is absolutely striking in full bloom in spring and also has attractive leaves and berries. The flowers are cup-shaped and appear in clusters against the dense, dark green to bluish-green leaves. The red to dark blue berries hang in bunches. 

This is an erect shrub growing in full sun and soil that is well-drained. It is slow growing, usually to 5 feet tall and sometimes 13 feet.  It is very cold hardy, heat tolerant, and can handle regular summer water. Because the leaves are quite spiny, it is best planted away from walkways and can serve as a barrier hedge.

It is deer-resistant and attracts birds and butterflies. Western Bluebirds are especially fond of the berries.  It is a federally and state listed endangered species that is widely cultivated in gardens and parks.

The shrub California barberry (Berberis pinnata) was formerly known as Mahonia pinnata, and some sources still refer to it that way. The genus Mahonia is sometimes considered to be part of Berberis. Other common names for this species are wavyleaf barberry and shinyleaf mahonia. It is a dark green bush which resembles holly with its serrated leaves but bears round purple fruits that look like small grapes. This species is quite similar to the Oregon-grape (Mahonia aquifolium), and is sometimes called the California Oregon-grape. The plant is found along the coast from Oregon to Baja on coastal mountain slopes, most often as part of a woodland plant community. Its fruits are not true grapes, but they are edible, if a bit sour and packed with seeds. They have also been used to produce purple dye. Medicinal uses of the plant include an edible bark preparation as treatment for fever, rheumatism, and dysentery.

Tolerates almost any soil type. Prefers sun or part shade in coastal sites, and part shade in inland sites. Selected for the garden.

Island Barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. insularis) is a rare native shrub that grows in Southern California, primarily in the Channel Islands region. It tends to grow in rocky slopes, at elevations from 0-3900 feet.

California Barberry (Berberis pinnata ssp. pinnata) is a native shrub that grows in northern, southern and central California. It tends to grow in rocky slopes, at elevations from 0-3900 feet.