CHAP. VIII. BERBERA CEM. BE/RBERIS. 301 
A. Leaves thin, deciduous. Flowers solitary. 
# 1. B.sier’rica Pall. The Siberian Berberry. 
Identification. Pall. Fl. Ross., 2. p. 42.; Dec. Prod., 1. p. 108.; Don’s 
Mill., 1. p. 117.; Pen. Cyc., 4. p. 260. 
Synonymes. B. altaica Pall. ; Vinettier de Sibérie, Fr. 
ngravings. Pall. Fl. Ross., 2. t. 67. ; and our jig. 46. 
Spec. Char.,§c. Spines 3—7-parted. Leaves lanceolate- 
obovate, ciliately serrated. Peduncles 1-flowered, shorter 
than the leaves. (Don’s Mill., i. 117.) — A small shrub, 
found in rocky places, on the hills and lower mountains 
of Altai, Siberia, &c., and introduced into England by 
Pallas in 1790. Pallas states that the priests of the 
Mongols, who also act as physicians, being taught by 
the Tunguti, use the bark of the trunk and the yellow 
pulpy matter of the root for various diseases ; and that 
a decoction of the young twigs is sometimes applied 
with a pencil to the eyes as a charm. In British gardens 
this species is a low scrubby bush, seldom exceeding 
2 ft. in height. Price, in London, 10s. 6d. each. 
B. Leaves thin, mostly deciduous. Flowers in Racemes. 
22. B.vuiea‘ris L. The common Berberry. 
Identification. Lin. Sp., 472.; Dec. Prod., 1. p. 105. ; Don’s Mill., 1. p. 115. 
Synonymes. Pipperidge Tree, Dr. Turner ; E’pine vinette, Fr. ; gemeine Berberitze, Ger. 
ngravings. Eng. Bot., t.49.; Willd. Baum., t. 39.; E. of Pl., 4922. 
Spec. Char. Spines 3-parted. Leaves somewhat obovate, ciliately serrated. 
Racemes many-flowered, pendulous. Petals entire. (Don’s Mill., i. p. 115.) 
Varieties. These are numerous. Those recognised by De Candolle and G. 
Don are as follows : — 
& B.v. 2 lutea. The yellow-fruited common Berberry. — Fruit yellow. 
2 B.v.3 alba. The white-fruited common Berberry. — Fruit white. 
2 B. v. 4 violdcea. The violet-coloured-fruited common Berberry.— Fruit 
violaceous. 
& B.v. 5 purpurea. The purple-fruited common Berberry. — Fruit purple, 
leaves narrow, hardly ciliated. 2B. innominata Kielm. 
» B.v.6 nigra. The black-fruited common Berberry. — Fruit black ; leaves 
oblong, ciliately serrated, serratures few. The fruit of this plant 
is said by Tournefort, who found it on the banks of the Euphrates, 
to be of delicious flavour. 
& B.v. 7 dilcis. The sweet-fruited common Berberry.— Fruit red, some- 
what less acid than that of the common berberry. Leaves of a bright 
shining green. Native of Austria. 
& B. v.8 aspérma. The seedless Berberry.— Fruit destitute of seeds. Miller, 
and also Du Hamel, both say that suckers taken from this variety com- 
monly produce fruit with seeds; that, as the tree grows older, the 
seeds become fewer, and that it is the age of the plant that at last 
causes the fruit to be seedless; in that case this plant must be con- 
sidered more a variation than a variety. B. v. aspérma is said by 
Du Hamel to produce the best fruit for preserving ; and it is from it 
that the delicious Confitures d’ E’pine vinette, for which Rouen is so 
celebrated, are made. (Nov. Duh., iv. p. 13.) Price, 2s. 6d. each. 
All these varieties are in the garden of the London Horticultural Society. 
Other Varieties. Dr. Lindley says, that “ there is in the Catalogues a Ca- 
nadian berberry, which appears to be nothing more than a common berberry,. 
brought from North America; and also Bérberis datrica and _altaica, 
neither of which merits to be distinguished from B. vulgaris.” 
Description. In a wild state, the common berberry is seldom found higher 
than 4 ft. or 5 ft., but ina state of culture it may be grown to nearly 30 ft. 
