Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii)

chappy56

Mame
Messages
211
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Location
Illinois
USDA Zone
5
I picked one of these up late last fall at a garden center that had an unusual fat, tapering trunk. Having never had one before I'm curious about it waking up and beginning to bud. With a lot of the leaves left on it from last year, it's hard to identify the buds swelling. In addition, should the buds also turn green? This is the variety that has red leaves. Thanks in advance for your input. By the way, I'm in zone 5.
 
Messages
235
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207
Location
Southern Ontario, Canada
USDA Zone
5-6
Give it a shake to get some of those leaves out! lol and they'll push green buds and the new leaves usually come out green with some red then get darker as they harden off depending on the variety.
 

raydomz

Shohin
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270
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Location
Detroit, MI
What I see with mine is: they bud fairly early, just after my boxwoods wake up. The buds swell to a bright red before popping green/burgundy/red. Don't be afraid of pulling off/rubbing off the dried old leaves. Or as suggested, shake it out. This is about the time of year that we in zone 5 start to get antsy about buds popping - don't worry, they'll pop!
 
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