Oregon Holly Grape, Mahonia aquifolium, Seeds Hardy, Edible Fruit, Fragrant Showy Flowers, Evergreen with Fall Color, Shade, Cold and Drought Tolerant, Attracts Birds, Wildlife Food/Shelter, Adaptable Oregon Holly Grape is an evergreen shrub that is native to rocky woods and coniferous forests in the Pacific Northwest from British Columbia to northern California. It is known by a large variety of different common names including Oregon hollygrape, Oregon grapeholly or Oregon grape. This is a slow growing, suckering, evergreen shrub with a spreading to upright habit that typically grows 3 to 6 feet tall and to 5 feet wide. It is noted for its mildly fragrant yellow flowers in spring, edible blue-black berries in late summer, shiny compound holly-like evergreen foliage and ability to grow well in shade. Oregon Holly Grape is an evergreen shrub related to the barberry. It is not a true grape, but gets its name from the purple clusters of berries whose color and slightly dusted appearance is reminiscent of grapes. The flower is the State Flower of Oregon, hence the common name. It is used in gardens and natural landscaping similarly to barberry, as a plant suited for low-maintenance plantings and loose hedges. It is resistant to summer drought, tolerates poor soils, and does not create excessive leaf litter. Its berries attract birds and a variety of wildlife. The berries of the Oregon grape are edible and can be made into jam or the juice can be fermented to make wine, similar to European barberry wine folk traditions, although it requires an unusually high amount of sugar. The inner bark of the larger stems and roots of Oregon grape yield a yellow dye, the berries give purple dye. As the leaves of Oregon grape are holly-like and resist wilting, the foliage is sometimes used by florists for greenery. Foliage: Emerging reddish, changing to light bronzed-green, turning lustrous dark green, then finally becoming a deep burgundy in Winter. Often subject to “burning” in winter, resulting in a bleached appearance of the foliage. Evergreen, alternate, odd-pinnately compound, with 5 to 9 leaflets that are individually elliptical to ovate, very spiny-dentate on the margins and glossy. Flowers: Monoecious. Bright yellow, flowering in April, with a dense cluster of many small flowers in a large terminal and smaller lateral inflorescences, attracting many bees and mildly fragrant. The inflorescences are an attractive contrast against the previous year’s burgundy foliage and the newly emerging red foliage Fruits: Clusters of ellipsoid green berries (to .5 inch) mature to a blue-black color with a white cast (a “bloom” on the cuticle, as in Blueberries or Grapes) in August and September, and may persist into December. Berries are edible and are eaten by birds and a variety of wildlife. Twig: Main stems are largely unbranched, with compound leaves arising directly from main stems; green when young, turning gray-brown with age. The stems and twigs have a thickened, corky appearance. Bark: Gray-brown and smooth or slightly rough, sometimes appears striped as the bark matures. Form: A tall, erect, evergreen shrub reaching 3 to 10 feet fall. Most commonly grow in clusters with numerous, erect, unbranched stems. Other Names: Oregon Holly Grape, Mahonia aquifolium, Blue Barberry, Berberia aquifolium, Oregongrape, Tall Oregon-grape Zone: 5 to 8 Growth Rate: Slow Plant Type: Broadleaf Evergreen Shrub Family: Berberidaceae (Barberry Family) Native Range: Northwest North America Height: 3 to 6 feet Spread: 2 to 5 feet Shape: Irregular branching with upright to spreading habit. Bloom Time: April-May Bloom Color: Yellow Flower/Fruit: Showy yellow flowers in 2″ to 3″ long racemes followed by .5” edible blue berries. Sun: Full Sun to Part Shade Fall Color: Purple Bronze to Bright Red Drought Tolerance: Moderate-High Water: Medium Maintenance: Medium Site Requirements/ Soil Tolerances: Grow in moist, organically rich, acidic, well-drained soils in part shade to full shade. Prefers part shade locations. Site in locations protected from exposure to strong winds and full sun. Culture: Plants spread by stolons to form colonies. Unless naturalizing, suckers should be promptly removed as they appear. Single specimen shrubs fruit poorly. Grow more than one shrub together for best fruit production (single specimens with no other pollinator in the area fruit poorly if at all). Uses: Best in small groupings in shady areas. Shrub borders. Foundation planting. Woodland or shade gardens. Sowing Mahonia aquifolium Seeds: For best results, please follow the instructions in the order provided. Scarify: Soak in water for 24 hours Stratify: Cold 90 days, 40 Degrees F in a Moist Medium. Germination: Sow 1/8” DeepFor more information about seed pretreatment and growing trees and shrubs from seed, please download this .pdf:https://cdn.forestresearch.gov.uk/2007/08/fcpg018.pdf Germination: Seeds Packets are labeled with seed name and sowing details. Seeds have not been pretreated unless specified in the listing. Seed is not a specific Cultivar (Variety) unless specified in the listing. Due to the many factors involved in successful germination, Seller cannot be responsible for buyers growing methods or mistakes. I have provided what I believe to be a good overview on this page (which you are free to print for further reference), however, it is still recommended to check specialist literature for more details and practices specific to your climate and soil conditions to avoid mistakes in the germination and growing process. 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