This Week It's Berberis

Great for hedging, wildlife and multi-season interest, berberis offer a host of benefits. Graham gets stuck in to the prickly problem of selecting six from the 19 AGM holders

IF you’ve ever had a run-in with berberis you’ll already know that they are thorny plants. But their prickly nature, as it turns out, is actually quite a good thing, and although you need gloves when pruning, those thorns have two distinct advantages.

First, they ensure that a berberis is a safe place for a bird to make a nest. Cats – not to mention magpies and jays – are too smart to risk trying to get into a berberis to prey on nestlings, and small birds can sneak in unharmed.