Description of the Mahonia plant, how to properly plant and grow on a personal plot, advice on breeding, combating possible diseases and pests, interesting notes, species and varieties.
Mahonia is an evergreen plant that belongs to the Berberidaceae family. In nature, natural areas of growth are in the western states of the United States, but the range can extend from California lands to British Columbia. Another area where Mahonia grows are the eastern and central Asian regions, Japan and China. Basically, the plant prefers to settle in the plains or in the mountains. It is noteworthy that this representative of the flora is practically not found in the wild. The genus contains about fifty species.
| Family name | Barberry |
| Growing period | Perennial |
| Vegetation form | Shrubs or short trees |
| Breeding method | Vegetative (cuttings, use of leaf buds, deposition of root layers or the use of root shoots), occasionally seed |
| Landing period | Mid-April or after fruit ripening |
| Landing rules | The distance between the seedlings is at least 1 m, the depth of the pit is 40-50 cm |
| Priming | Any, but nutritious, loose and rich in humus, good moisture retention |
| Soil acidity values, pH | 6, 5-7 - neutral |
| Lighting degree | Partial shading, but can outlast sunny locations |
| Humidity parameters | Only in dry and hot periods |
| Special care rules | Stagnant moisture is not allowed |
| Height values | Up to 1 m |
| Inflorescences or type of flowers | Panicle, location apical or axillary |
| Flower color | Light yellow or deep yellow |
| Flowering period | April-May, sometimes in October |
| Fruit type and color | Blue purple berries |
| Fruiting period | Aug. Sept |
| Decorative time | All year round |
| Application in landscape design | Rockeries or rock gardens, alleys or tapeworms, undersized species as ground covers, low hedges and curbs |
| USDA zone | 4–8 |
The genus of these plants is named after the American gardener with Irish roots, Bernard McMahon (1775-1816). This flora researcher carried out work on the acclimatization of those representatives of the green world, which were brought to the east coast of the United States from the western lands. Such copies were supplied by the expeditions of Clark and Lewis, carried out during 1803-106. People call Mahonia "Oregon grapes" or "lily of the valley bush". The first term came from the fruit, which resembles grape berries of a rich purple color, the surface of which is covered with a waxy bloom. The second one is noticed by people due to the similarity of the small sizes of bell-shaped flowers with lily of the valley inflorescences.
This genus includes evergreen shrubs or small trees, the height of which does not exceed one meter. Their crown is formed by branched shoots. The root system is characterized by vigor and is the source of multiple root suckers, which subsequently form dense thickets. When the branches are young, they are covered with pinkish-gray bark, the old shoots and the trunk of the plant itself (or trunks) are grayish-brown, decorated with stripes running longitudinally.
The length of the leaf plates reaches 0.5 m. The outlines of the leaves are complex, the shape is pinnate, they are 5–9 leaf lobes. The surface of the foliage is leathery and glossy, the color is dark emerald. The edge of the leaves is with sharp teeth. Moreover, each leaf is attached with petioles with a reddish tint.
Flowers in Mahonia open in large numbers and inflorescences are collected from them at the tops of branches or in leaf axils. The outlines of the inflorescences are panicle. The petals in the flowers are light yellow or deep yellow in color. There are three pairs of sepals located in two circles. There are as many petals in the corolla and stamens as there are sepals. The ovary is characterized by an upper position and is formed by one carpel.
Flowering in a lily of the valley shrub begins in April or with the arrival of May days and lasts almost a month. At the same time, there are specimens that may have a second wave of flowering, which occurs in mid-autumn. After the flowers are pollinated, the ripening of fruits resembling grape berries begins.
Fruiting in Mahonia occurs in the period from August to September. The fruits are dark purple or black and blue in color. The shape of the berry is rounded or may have slightly elongated outlines. The pulp inside the fruit is characterized by a sweet-sour or tart taste and excellent juiciness. It surrounds 1–4 pairs of seeds.
This plant is an excellent melliferous plant and looks beautiful in the garden area, and also due to its simplicity and leathery foliage will be a wonderful decoration of the garden.
Growing Mahonia: planting and caring for the backyard
- Landing place This evergreen plant should be selected the same as its natural preferences - a semi-shady location, but if there is no way out, then Mahonia can live in the sun. At the same time, it was noticed that the best growth, flowering and fruiting will be in such a place where partial shelter will be provided. The proximity of groundwater should be excluded, despite the love for moist soil. For protection from the cold wind, you can plant the plant against a warm wall.
- Soil for Mahonia Anyone can be used, but it is important that it is nutritious, loose and rich in humus, and has good moisture retention, which the plant is very fond of. But at the same time, stagnation of water should not be allowed, since the root system will begin to suffer. Some gardeners prepare the soil mixture on their own from humus, sod soil and coarse sand, maintaining a ratio of 2: 1: 1. Mahonia does not tolerate compaction of the substrate. If the soil becomes too dry, the plant will suffer frost damage. When the soil on the site is too heavy or clayey, it is recommended to use a drainage layer with a thickness of about 20-25 cm when planting.
- Planting Mahonia. The best time to plant is mid-April or after fruiting. If it is planned to form a dense group of seedlings, then it is recommended to maintain the distance between the plants about 1 m. When the planting is loose, then this figure reaches two meters. The plant normally tolerates a transplant at any age. The pit should be prepared for planting at least 40-50 cm deep. At the same time, a drainage layer of expanded clay, pebbles or broken brick is laid on its bottom. Then a little soil mixture is poured and a seedling is placed. Its root collar does not deepen, it is leveled in accordance with the soil surface on the site.
- Watering. If precipitation falls normally and regularly, then watering Mahonia is not required. However, in too dry periods of spring and autumn, it is recommended to moisten the soil in the near-trunk circle twice a week. Each bush or tree should have up to 10 liters of water. After watering or rain, it is necessary to shallow the substrate, as it begins to thicken.
- Fertilizers for Mahonia must be applied during the period of greatest vegetation activity (spring-summer). Such dressings will provide abundant flowering. They are given twice, using complete mineral complexes, such as, for example, Kemira-Universal or Fertika. Instead, some gardeners use nitroammofosk for 1 m2 up to 100-120 g.
- Pruning. After the flowering process of Mahonia is over and the fruits ripen for harvest, it is recommended to cut the branches of those varieties whose growth rate is high enough (for example, Japanese Mahonia) by 1/3 of their length. This will ensure that the plant will not stretch out its shoots and become bare. The type of holly mahonia needs to be cut off annually to form the crown of the bush. In the same period, it is recommended to mulch the trunk circle with a rather thick layer of rotted manure or garden compost (rotted foliage). With the arrival of spring, you need to inspect and remove all frostbitten leaves.
- Wintering of Mahonia. In our latitudes, namely in the middle lane, the plant copes well with frost without any shelter. All due to the fact that some bushes are characterized by small parameters in height and can perfectly winter covered with snow. However, if the winter turns out to be especially harsh, then the branches, even being under the "snow cap", may freeze over, but with the arrival of spring heat, the foliage will quickly recover from the newly formed buds. In order for the wintering to be successful in the autumn, it is recommended to mulch the trunk circle with compost or peat chips. When pruning before winter, you need to form the neat outlines of the bushes by removing the tops of the branches that have been stretched too much. After that, if the cultivation takes place in a cold climatic zone, then the plants should be covered with spruce branches or a good layer of dry foliage. On top, you can put a non-woven material, for example, lutrasil. As soon as spring comes and the snow melts, it is recommended to immediately remove the shelter so that the branches do not dry out.
- How to prepare raw mahonia. The local population has long been aware of the rules for harvesting bark, young twigs and leaves, and the roots of the plant are also used for medicinal purposes. You can follow the same rules to provide yourself with medicinal raw materials. In special dryers, it is necessary to dry the bark, and then store it in cloth bags. The root shoots of Mahonia should be dug out in the autumn or in March. The roots are cleaned from the soil, washed off its remnants under running water and put them on the racks for drying in one layer, or drying is carried out in an oven. Parts of the plant that are already well dried should be chopped up and packed in paper or cloth bags for storage. It is recommended to dry young foliage and twigs under a canopy so that they do not fall on the sun's rays, and sufficient ventilation is provided. The roots and bark are stored for three years, no more, the shelf life of foliage does not exceed a couple of years.
- The use of magonia in landscape design. Since even in the winter months the deciduous mass will continue to delight the eye, remaining on the branches, this plant is widely used today for decorating personal plots. If we talk about the type of Japanese Mahonia and its hybrid forms, then such representatives of the flora look good in a single planting (tapeworms). They can be used to decorate mixborders in the background. A good solution would be to plant among bushy thickets in natural gardens. Species that are characterized by a small height of shoots (Mahonia holly, Wagner, and also creeping) are recommended to be used as ground covers, placing them on the slopes of hills, covering voids among stones in rockeries. Mahonia can also be planted in the foreground of the strip formed by shrub plantations. Shrubs that bloom in the spring, such as rhododendrons and azaleas, magnolias and camellias, are recognized as the best neighbors for Mahonia. Pieris and sarcococci, Japanese keria and Erica, as well as Hamasmelis, all kinds of flowering bulbous plants and primroses, pleasing the eye with the very first flowers, will look good next to them.
Read also about planting, pruning and caring for a spirea in a personal plot.
Mahonia breeding tips
To obtain young plants with evergreen foliage, it is recommended to use vegetative methods, which include cuttings, the use of a leaf bud, the deposition of root layers or the use of root shoots. The seed method can also be used occasionally.
- Reproduction of Mahonia by root shoots. Typically, the plant is characterized by a root system, which is the source of numerous shoots that arise in the near-stem circle. It is recommended to carefully separate them from the mother plant before the activation of spring growth begins and, without damaging the root system, which belongs to the process, transplanted to the prepared place.
- Reproduction of Mahonia seeds. Planting material is harvested in the autumn (around September) and sown immediately. For spring sowing, exposure in the cold will be required, therefore, forced stratification must be carried out before sowing. 4 months before sowing, the seeds are placed on the lower shelf of the refrigerator, where the heat values are in the range of 0-5 degrees. When sowing in autumn, stratification is natural. For reproduction, peat-sandy soil or special soil for seedlings is used. It is poured into seedling boxes and the seeds are buried. At first, shading is recommended for Mahonia seedlings, since the sun's rays at noon can burn young leaves. When the seedling acquires several pairs of leaves, then in the spring, after the retreat of return frosts, it is possible to transplant into the garden. The flowering of a plant obtained by this method can be expected only after four years from the moment of sowing the seeds.
- Propagation of Mahonia by cuttings. In order to apply this method, it is recommended to cut blanks from non-lignified, that is, green branches. Therefore, only young Mahonia plants should be used for propagation. However, the process of rooting cuttings requires conditions under which artificial fog will be provided, which is rather difficult to do indoors or in a garden. If the cuttings were cut from the branches of old specimens, then rooting does not occur.
See also recommendations for self-propagation of "meadow rue".
Fight against possible diseases and pests when growing Mahonia in the open field
The biggest problem in the cultivation of this berry shrub and at the same time an ornamental plant is diseases arising from violations of agricultural rules. At the same time, one can distinguish among them:
- Spots (phyllostictosis or stagonosporosis). In the first case, the foliage, where it is affected by the causative agent of the disease, turns brown, the second disease is characterized by the formation of spots with a dark brown color on the edges of the leaf plates. In any case, the leaves that are exposed to the defeat die off quickly. For the fight, it is recommended to spray with preparations containing copper. Such a solution can be mixed from green soap and copper sulfate in a 10: 1 ratio, diluted in a bucket of water (10 l). Some people use fungicides such as Bordeaux liquid, Polycarbacin or Cineb.
- Powdery mildew, well distinguishable due to a grayish bloom on the leaves. To cure the affected plant, spraying is carried out during the summer at intervals of 100-120 days. For this, agents such as Topsin-M, Fundazol or Karatan are used. You can use colloidal sulfur, which is stirred with anabazine sulfate in a ratio of 1: 2, 5 or 1: 5.
- Rust, which also manifests itself as spots of a reddish-brown color on the leaves, then leads to the death of the affected tissue. To cure, sprays with Tsineb or preparations containing sulfur are performed. If in rare cases the plant is affected by pests, among which spider mites and aphids are isolated, then treatment with insecticidal preparations is necessary - Fitoverm, Aktara or Aktellik.
Read also about isopyrum pest and disease control.
Interesting notes about magonia and its uses
Although the plant is not included in the pharmacopoeial lists of Russia and is not used in medicine, in many countries the type of Mahonia aquifolium is well known to folk healers. Not only fruits are full of useful properties, but bark and branches. Since these parts contain not only active substances such as palmitin and zinc, copper and silicon, manganese and sodium, but also alkaloids - berberine, hydrastine, and berbamine. The fruits are full of tannins, sugars and organic acids.
Because of this composition, Mahonia is introduced as a component in homeopathic medicines that are used for skin diseases, such as psoriasis or various dermatitis. The composition of the ointment "Psoriaten", which is produced in Germany, contains parts of this plant. Thanks to the aforementioned alkaloids, Mahonia-based preparations help to remove inflammation, bile outflow, can have a diuretic and soothing (relaxing) effect. Patients suffering from intestinal dysbiosis are prescribed a herbal medicine "Nature's Way", which contains an extract from Mahonia.
Since the alkaloid berberine is characterized by an antiviral effect and can have a positive effect on the functioning of the liver (hepatoprotector), drugs with an extract from the root of Mahonia help to increase appetite and improve metabolic processes in the body, have a beneficial effect on the entire gastrointestinal tract.
Also, magonium extract is famous for strengthening the immune system and a positive effect on the cardiovascular system. Antioxidants, which are found in large quantities in the plant, help to protect the cells of the body from wilting, since the effects of free radicals are neutralized. Such a remedy is irreplaceable for cholecystitis and any diseases of the skin, such as eczema, herpes, dermatitis of any etiology and psoriasis.
Since the plant grows in large quantities in the vastness of the American continent, its properties have been known for a long time and have been successfully used by folk healers. Magonia was used for gout and rheumatism, disorders of the gastrointestinal tract (dyspepsia) and diarrhea, kidney and liver diseases. Also, tinctures and decoctions on this plant will help eliminate edema and will help strengthen the walls of thin blood vessels (capillaries).
However, one should not forget about contraindications to the use of drugs based on magonia, since it contains alkaloids that are toxic at high concentrations. They are:
- pregnancy and lactation;
- the child's age of the patient;
- gastritis;
- duodenal ulcer;
- gallstone disease (cholelithiasis).
In case of an overdose of Mahonia preparations, nausea and severe intestinal upset occur.
Types and varieties of Mahonia
Mahonia aquifolia
The native lands of growth are in the western regions of the North American continent. In nature, such plants can be found in forests and slopes heavily overgrown with wormwood. It is drought-resistant. It has the shape of a shrub with evergreen foliage, the branches of which reach a height of 1.5 m. The leaves are large, leathery and glossy, their outlines are odd-pinnate. Compiled a sheet of 5-9 leaf lobes with spiny teeth on the edge.
When the foliage is just unfolding, it has a reddish tint, but with the arrival of summer it takes on a dark green color scheme, which turns reddish-golden-bronze in autumn. This is especially evident if the plant is planted in a sunny location. The species is named after the shape of the leaves, as they resemble holly foliage.
When blooming, buds with yellow petals open. The number of colors is large. They are collected in erect inflorescences with strong branching, crowning the tops of the shoots. The flowering process begins in May and takes almost 30 days. There is often a secondary flowering in mid-autumn. After that, the fruits ripen, reaching 1 cm in diameter. The shape of the berries is in the form of an ellipse, the color is dark blue with a bluish bloom. They are suitable for food, their pulp has a sweet and sour taste. They begin to ripen at the end of summer days or in September and become a real decoration of the bush.
Since Mahonia is a plant characterized by cross-pollination, it is recommended to plant several heterosexual specimens (at least two) nearby to ripen the fruits. If a shrub or tree grows like a tapeworm, then fruits may appear on the branches, which were formed from the fact that the pollen was accidentally transferred by the wind from one flowers to another. The yield of such a bush directly will depend on the conditions in which pollination is carried out. But, despite this, the species is used, but as an ornamental crop, and not as a berry bush. In culture, it is customary to grow the variety since the beginning of the 20th century.
Of the decorative forms, the most popular are:
- Walnut (f. Juglandifolia) leaf plates are made up of 7 pieces of leaf lobes, which are smaller in size than that of the base species and their arrangement with greater density. The petiole of a compound leaf has a reddish tint.
- Graceful (f. Gracilis) characterized by leaflets with a large elongation of the contours.
- Golden (f. Aurea) has a golden foliage.
- Variegated (f. Variegata) pleases the eye with beautiful variegated leaves.
Among the varieties that are characterized by popularity among gardeners are:
- Apollo, which was bred in 1973 by Dutch breeders and it is the most demanded in Europe. It is characterized by a low growth rate. The height to which the dense crown stretches is in the range of 0.6–1 m. Its diameter is the same size. If the height of the branches does not exceed 60 cm, then it can be used as a ground cover. Foliage of complex shape, consisting of 5-7 lobes. The total length of the leaf plate is about 30 cm. There is a pointed serration along the edge of the leaf. In summer, the color of the foliage is emerald, and in autumn they are set off with a bronze color scheme. During flowering, which occurs in May, a large number of bright yellow fragrant buds open. The diameter of the flower opening is 0.8 cm. The fruits have a bluish-black tint with a gray waxy coating. The harvest ripens in the fall.
- Atropurpurea is also of Dutch origin and dates from 1915. The height of the bush is no more than 0.6 m with the same crown diameter. The length of the leaves is about 25 cm. The surface of the leaflets is glossy and leathery, the color is dark green. The diameter of numerous flowers does not exceed 0.8 cm. The petals of a cheerful canary color, exude a strong fragrant aroma. The buds open on May days. After that, the ripening of the fruit of a blue-black hue takes place. You can pick berries at the end of summer.
Creeping Mahonia (Mahonia repens)
also comes from North American lands. Excellent drought resistance. In culture, it is rare. The general outline is not much different from the previous species, but only the height almost never exceeds 0.5 m. The leaf plate is composed of lobes with a rounded ovoid shape. The sheet contains 3-7 leaflets. Their color is dull greenish-gray. The foliage is leathery with a prickly edge represented by pointed teeth.
The growing season begins in mid-April and ends in early November. The growth rate is slow. Flowering can be expected after six years from the time of planting. Flowers begin to open from mid-May, taking a period of 14-17 days. Sometimes there is a second wave, which occurs at the end of October. Fruits can only be expected when the plant has crossed the 8-year line. The berries ripen every year in large quantities and can be harvested in mid-August.
Popular forms are available:
- Round-leaved (f. Rotundifolia) characterized by five leaf lobes per leaf.
- Large-fruited (f. Macrocarpa) characterized by fruits exceeding 1 cm in diameter.
Japanese Mahonia (Mahonia japonica)
is an evergreen tree or large bush. The branches have spectacular decorative outlines, crowned with elongated racemose inflorescences. The height, which the shoots reach, is 2 m. In this case, the branches grow straight and stick out on different sides, resembling the spokes in a wheel. When blooming, bright yellow flowers bloom with a strong aroma with notes of lily of the valley.
Also in the gardens it is customary to grow Nyberg Mahonia (Mahonia neubertii), Wagner's Mahonia (Mahonia wagneri) and various Mahonia x media hybrids of species origin.
Video about growing Mahonia outdoors:
