Berberis nepalensis

Spreng.

Nepal barberry

Berberidaceae Edible: Fruit, Flowers, Shoots 332 iNaturalist observations

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Description

A shrub. It grows to about 3 m high. The leaves have stalks. They have an odd number of leaflets along the stalk. There are 17-21 leaflets. They are oval and taper to the tip. They have spiny teeth. They are glossy. The flowers are yellow. They occur in dense clusters along the stalk.

Edible Uses

The ripe fruit are eaten fresh or pickled; they are bitter and acidic. The flowers and young shoots are eaten as a vegetable and used in chutney.

Traditional Uses

The ripe fruit are eaten fresh. They are bitter and acidic. They are also pickled. The flowers and young shoots are eaten as a vegetable and used in chutney.

Distribution

A subtropical plant. In Nepal they grow between 2200-2800 m altitude.

Where It Grows

Asia, Bhutan, China, Himalayas, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Northeastern India, SE Asia, Sikkim,

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed.

Notes

There are 70-100 Mahonia species. Many Mahonia are included in Berberis.

Synonyms

Berberis acanthifolia Wall. ex Walp.Mahonia acanthifolia Wall. ex G. Don

Also Known As

Barberi Nepal, Chutro, Kesari, Pual-eng, Tamen, Taming

References (11)

Ambasta S.P. (Ed.), 2000, The Useful Plants of India. CSIR India. p 350 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Dobriyal, M. J. R. & Dobriyal, R., 2014, Non Wood Forest Produce an Option for Ethnic Food and Nutritional Security in India. Int. J. of Usuf. Mngt. 15(1):17-37 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Gen. hist. 1:118. 1831 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Kar, A., et al, 2013, Wild Edible Plant Resources used by the Mizos of Mizoram, India. Kathmandu University Journal of Science, Engineering and Technology. Vol. 9, No. 1, July, 2013, 106-126
Manandhar, N.P., 2002, Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press. Portland, Oregon. p 306 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)

Show all 11 references

Murtem, G. & Chaudhrey, P., 2016, An ethnobotanical note on wild edible plants of Upper Eastern Himalaya, India. Brazilian Journal of Biological Sciences, 2016, v. 3, no. 5, p. 63-81. (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Savita, et al, 2006, Studies on wild edible plants of ethnic people in east Sikkim. Asian J. of Bio Sci. (2006) Vol. 1 No. 2 : 117-125 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Singh, H.B., Arora R.K.,1978, Wild edible Plants of India. Indian Council of Agricultural Research, New Delhi. p 66 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Singh, V. B., et al, (Ed.) Horticulture for Sustainable Income and Environmental Protection. Vol. 1 p 217 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Srivastava, R. C., et al, 2010, Indigenous biodiversity of Apatani plateau: Learning on biolcultural knowledge of Apani tribe of Qrunachal Pradesh for sustainable livelihoods. Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge 9(3): 432-442 (As Mahonia acanthifolia)
Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 591