Berberis ottawensis Superba - Barberry

The Berberis ottawensis "Superba" is a variety of hybrid Barberry particularly vigorous and remarkably coloured. Forming an impenetrable mass, this bush with arching and thorny branches bears magnificent foliage from spring to autumn. Purplish-violet until summer, it welcomes in spring by hanging clusters of small yellow flowers that shine on its dark leaves, then in autumn small bright red berries, nestled in its now crimson red mass. Up close or from afar, exposed in isolation or associated in a hedge, this superb deciduous barberry animates the garden until late in the season. Requiring little care, it thrives in full sun or partial shade, in any soil that is not too dry.

The Berberis x ottawensis is a hybrid barberry of origin, resulting from a crossbreeding carried out in the 19th century between the Berberis thunbergii, native to Japan, and the Berberis vulgaris, native to Western Asia, Southern and Central Europe. The cultivar "Superba", sometimes marketed under the name Berberis thunbergii "Atropurpurea Superba", like its ancestors, is a bush of the berberidaceae family. The Royal Horticultural Society awarded this plant for its exceptional ornamental qualities and its performance in the garden. It is characterized by a bushy and flexible habit, rather spread out, in a very dense dome, and deciduous foliage. Its branches, initially erect then arching, covered with a reddish bark, bear simple or trifurcated spines, 1.5 cm (0.6 in) long.

Fast-growing, it will reach an average maturity of 2.50 m (8 ft) in all directions, and will easily develop a little more in width than in height. The slightly arched branches bear foliage composed of small oval leaves, dark purple to violet in bud, slightly pruinose. They darken and turn somewhat green in summer, then take on a magnificent crimson red color in autumn before falling. The flowering in this "Superba" variety is quite abundant in May, softening the somewhat austere overall appearance of this dark and very dense shrub. It appears in the form of hanging clusters of 10 or more small flowers, scattered here and there among the dark foliage, their respective colours creating a pleasant contrast. The bell-shaped flowers, 1 cm (0.4 in) long, are a pale yellow tinged with purple. They appear on the previous year's shoots. They are nectariferous flowers, appreciated by pollinating insects. They are followed in September-October by small elongated fruits of a very bright red. They measure from 6 to 8 mm (0.3 in) in length and persist part of the winter. Note that this variety can, depending on the conditions, be sensitive to certain cryptogamic diseases.

The "Superba Barberry" is ideal for a medium-sized hedge, whether it is free or trimmed. Its spines, quite deterrent, as well as its vigor and impenetrable character, also allow it to be used within a defensive hedge, associated with European or Provence gorse (Ulex parviflorus), Japanese quince, holly, rugosa roses, Poncirus trifoliata or another evergreen barberry, Berberis linearifolia "Orange King". It can also be installed in shrub beds, with forsythias and dwarf abelias ("Abelia Kaleidoscope", "Petite Garden"), or with remontant roses with pink flowers (La France, Pierre de Ronsard) whose flowering it will magnify. It is attractive enough from spring to autumn to be installed in isolation, at the end of a large avenue for example, simply associated with a variegated foliage bush such as the Philadelphus Innocence.