Other Names:  Nana Compacta Rosemary Barberry

Description:

An attractive, compact shrub for the garden with tiny dark green leaves smothered in golden buds that open to golden-yellow flowers in spring; produces silver frosted blue-black berries in fall; tolerates most soil types

Ornamental Features

Dwarf Rosemary Barberry features tiny clusters of yellow flowers hanging below the branches in mid spring, which emerge from distinctive gold flower buds. It has attractive dark green evergreen foliage. The tiny narrow leaves are highly ornamental and remain dark green throughout the winter. The fruits are showy black drupes carried in abundance from early to late fall.

Landscape Attributes

Dwarf Rosemary Barberry is a dense multi-stemmed evergreen shrub with a mounded form. It lends an extremely fine and delicate texture to the landscape composition which should be used to full effect.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and should not require much pruning, except when necessary, such as to remove dieback. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Spiny

Dwarf Rosemary Barberry is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Dwarf Rosemary Barberry will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 20 years.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil type or pH, and is able to handle environmental salt. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid.

Dwarf Rosemary Barberry makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.