Barberry Thunberg Lutin Rouge (Berberis thunbergii Lutin Rouge)

Barberry Lutin Rouge is a winter-hardy deciduous shrub of the Barberry family, unpretentious in care and resistant to most diseases of horticultural crops. The variety is distinguished by immunity to air pollution, due to which it is often used for landscaping city parks.

Description Barberry Lutin Rouge

Barberry Thunberg variety Lutin Rouge is a compact shrub with abundant shoot formation. The crown of the plant is dense and dense.

The size of an adult shrub reaches 50 cm in height and 70-80 cm in width. The foliage of barberry Lutin Rouge in spring has a light green color, however, in autumn the color of the leaf plates turns into rich orange tones with a red tint.

The shoots of the plant are covered with light long spines, thin and elastic to the touch. The fruits of the barberry Thunberg variety Lutin Rouge are inedible, according to the description of this horticultural crop. Their shape resembles an oval, and the skin has a bright red color. The size of the fruit does not exceed 1 cm in diameter. Even after ripening, they do not fall off the branches for a long time, giving the bush a decorative look.

Planting and care

Despite the fact that the Thunberg barberry Lutin Rouge is a rather unpretentious variety, it is recommended to take a responsible approach to choosing a place for planting a plant – only in this case the decorative effect of the shrub will be fully disclosed.

There are a number of general landing recommendations:

1. Lutin Rouge barberry prefers open sunny areas. It also thrives well in moderate shade conditions.
2. The shrub, without much harm to development, is often planted in shaded places, but in this case the decorative effect of the barberry foliage will suffer – the leaf plate of this variety is filled with a rich orange color only with a sufficient amount of light.
3. It is better to plant barberry on soils with an average level of acidity.
4. When planting in groups, it is necessary to observe the distance between other crops. It is advisable to leave a gap of at least 50 cm. The thickening of the plantings is fraught with disproportionate forms of the barberry crown.
5. In no case should barberry Lutin Rouge be planted in wetlands and in lowlands where water accumulates after rains. If the rest of the recommendations can be neglected, then excessive soil moisture is detrimental to shrubs. That is why, before planting the plants, the planting pit must be drained without fail.

Barberry Thunberg Lutin Rouge calmly withstands strong winds, so it is not necessary to plant it near buildings. In addition, if necessary, the shrub can always be transplanted, since this variety has a very dense and superficial root system.

Seedling and planting preparation

Since the Lutin Rouge barberry grows best on neutral soils, it is recommended to dilute the soil with a high level of acidity. To do this, the site chosen for planting is dug up 10-15 days before planting and the soil mixture is introduced into the soil. Fertilizer composition:

• humus;
• fine-grained sand;
• land from the garden.

All components are taken in a ratio of 1:1:1.

You can also use slaked lime or wood ash to correct the soil, but they are introduced into the soil after planting the barberry. Approximately 1 g of lime and 400 g of ash are used for 200 plant.

Planting barberry Lyutin

Thunberg barberry is planted both in spring and autumn, however, planting in the autumn months is preferable. This is due to the fact that in the spring barberry seedlings sometimes begin to gain green mass too early. Such rapid growth harms the overall development of the shrub, affecting its decorative effect.

The landing procedure is as follows:

1. On a pre-prepared site, pits are dug about 50 cm deep. The recommended distance between two adjacent holes is 1-2 m.
2. Drainage is placed at the bottom of the pit. This stage is especially important when planting barberry in waterlogged soil. The thickness of the drainage layer should be approximately 8-10 cm.
3. A layer of fertilizer is placed on top of the drainage. To do this, you can use sod land, peat or wood ash.
4. The next layer is ordinary garden soil. 5 cm is enough.
5. On top of the garden soil, the roots of a barberry seedling are straightened.
6. After that, the root system of the plant is sprinkled with soil and the near-stem circle is lightly tamped.
7. Complete the planting with abundant watering.

Watering and top dressing

In regions with frequent rains, it is not necessary to water the Thunberg barberry Lutin Rouge. Natural precipitation is quite enough for a shrub, while excess moisture only causes rotting of the roots and death of the plant.

Barberry Thunberg tolerates the lack of moisture safely, however, prolonged drought can cause lightening of the foliage. The recommended frequency of watering in regions with a hot, dry climate is once a week.

For a better supply of moisture and air to the roots, the near-stem circle is loosened and weeded from time to time.

Barberry Lutin Rouge is actively fed only 2 years after planting for 2 years, that is, up to 4 years of age. As fertilizers, mixtures with a high nitrogen content are used. For example, for the first feeding, you can take a solution of urea. The proportions of the solution are 25-30 g of the substance per 1 bucket of water. This amount is enough for 1 bush.

Adult barberry Thunberg is fed 1 time every 4 years.

Trimming

Barberry Thunberg Lutin Rouge begin to cut 2 years after planting. Usually only dry or broken shoots are removed, and this procedure is carried out in early spring. The shrub also responds well to deep thinning, but cutting it more than 60-70% is not recommended.

Pruning the barberry not only gives the bush a neater look, but also contributes to the overall rejuvenation of the plant, since after the removal of old and damaged shoots, the shrub begins to actively form new shoots.

Preparation for winter

Barberry Thunberg of this variety is able to withstand low temperatures without harm to development, so adult plants are usually not covered. Warming is necessary only for young seedlings, whose age does not exceed 3 years.

To do this, the trunk circle is covered with a thick layer of dry foliage, on top of which spruce branches are laid out. The shoots of the barberry are tied up without pulling them too hard, after which the bush is wrapped with covering material and fixed in this position.

You can learn more about the features of planting Thunberg barberry from the video below:

Reproduction

Barberry Thunberg variety Lutin Rouge is propagated in the following ways:

• cuttings;
• seeds;
• layering;
• division of the bush.

Cuttings are made in June. The scheme for harvesting planting material looks like this:

1. The lateral shoots of the barberry are cut off at the root.
2. The cut branches are divided again into 2-3 cuttings, each about 12-15 cm long.
3. The bottom of the cuttings is cleaned of leaves and soaked in “Kornevin” – a root formation stimulator.
4. After that, the planting material is placed in a greenhouse and covered with plastic wrap.
5. The planted barberry is watered and ventilated from time to time.
6. As soon as the cuttings form the first 3-4 leaves, the greenhouse is periodically left open. This is necessary for hardening the barberry.
7. When the seedlings form a sufficiently developed root system, they are transplanted into open ground.

Propagation by seeds occurs as follows:

1. Ripened berries are removed from the bush, pitted and laid out on the windowsill to dry.
2. When the seeds dry, in the fall, before the onset of frost, they are planted in open ground.
3. After 2-2,5 years, the barberry begins to bear fruit.

The division of the bush is not as popular as other methods of breeding Thunberg barberry. The fact is that with such reproduction it is easy to damage the rhizome of the plant, which leads to its death. The procedure must be carried out very carefully and only with a well-sharpened tool.

For this, the barberry is dug up and the bush is divided into 3-4 equal parts. On the same day, the resulting delenki are seated.

The most effective way to propagate barberry Thunberg Lutin Rouge is considered to be breeding by layering. The procedure is very simple:

1. The lower shoot of the plant is tilted to the ground and deepened.
2. The layering is watered at the same time as the main bush.
3. The next year, the shoot forms roots.
4. Then they dig it out, finally separate it from the mother bush and plant it.

Diseases and pests

Pests infect the Lutin Rouge variety infrequently. If this still happens, then the shrub is attacked primarily by aphids. It sucks the juice from the leaves of the shrub, which leads to their drying out, the leaves curl and fall over time.

You can fight the pest with both chemical means and folk methods. In particular, a soap solution effectively copes with aphids, for the preparation of which it is necessary to dilute 1-250 g of grated laundry soap in 300 bucket of water. If desired, you can dilute this mixture with tobacco. 500 g will be enough for a bucket of water.

Powdery mildew is the most common shrub disease. This disease is provoked by a fungus that affects the leaf plate on both sides. As can be seen in the photo below, the leaves of the Thunberg barberry of the Lutin Rouge variety are covered with whitish stains.

The fight against powdery mildew involves spraying the bush with a solution of colloidal sulfur. You can also use a mixture of sulfur and lime or industrial fungicides.

The second most common disease of the Lutin Rouge variety is leaf spot. It manifests itself in the form of brownish spots and rapid drying of the foliage. For the treatment of plants using a weak solution of copper oxychloride.

Drying of shoots is provoked by a variety of fungi. The disease is expressed in the drying and dying off of the branches of the shrub. In order to stop the spread of the fungus, plantings are sprayed with fungicides and diseased shoots are cut off.

Conclusion

Barberry Lutin Rouge is perfect for forming a hedge or a low border. This variety is highly valued for its resistance to air pollution – the shrub can be planted not only in the backyard, but also on the territory of a private house, which is located within the city. In addition, it is frost-resistant and unpretentious, thanks to which the cultivation of shrubs is not particularly difficult even for a beginner in gardening.