While typically I wouldn’t plant Barberry so near to pedestrians and vehicles, it was placed here before me. I love the plant, absolutely love it. So, it stays. And, I think my openness to some of what came before is why I find the planting in this particular bed so gratifying.
- Japanese Barberry Berberis thunbergii
- Deciduous red leaf to 4-6’ with arching branches
- Can be rejuvenated by cutting back hard, get larger leaves this way
- Gives coveted inland autumnal vibe with red leaves falling to the ground in late fall
- Tough plant
- Honey Bush Melianthus major
- Love it for its fabulous architectonic leaf, relates in a gnarly way to the Barberry
- 6-12’ tall and a couple feet wider beautiful evergreen grey-green shrub
- Can be pruned as a small tree, prefer it as a shrub personally
- Another tough plant
- Wormwood Artemisia 'Powis Castle'
- Easy to care for, cut it back once in awhile to rejuvenate
- Fine, soft, fragrant foliage
- Fast growing excellent ground cover
- Brilliant contrast with burgundy of Barberry, additional textural contrast
- Softness makes frames the gnarly Barberry, making it seem a little more welcoming
- New Zealand Flax Phormium tenax
- Be sure you have the space to sustain these monsters and the time to maintain them
- I like them and inherited several happily, but they still require companion plantings to help them belong
