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["Lon J. Rombough" <lonrom@hevanet.com>]

Be sure to check with your State Dept. of Agriculture before you get any barberries.  Many species are banned because they are an alternate host for rust diseases of wheat and other crops.
That being said, I have seen dried barberries sold in a local Middle Eastern grocery, and I'd bet the seed in them would be viable.  I've gotten other fruits from them in the past and the seed has always been viable.  Apparently the fruits are all sun dried, which doesn't harm the seed.
-Lon Rombough
Grapes, writing, consulting, my book, The Grape Grower, at http://www.bunchgrapes.com  Winner of the Garden Writers Association "Best Talent in Writing" award for 2003.
On Nov 30, 2006, at 9:15 AM, Hal Love wrote:

Plants for a Future has quite a bit of information regarding the edible use of barberries. They have an edibility rating system, where 1 is the least edible to 5 being the best. Berberis thunbergii only has a rating of 2. While many other species have a rating of 3, four species, B. aristata, B. asiatica, B. buxifolia, and B. darwinii were given a rating of 4. You can view a list of 44 species of barberry, and 13 species of Mahonia, along with links to indivdual descriptions here, http://www.pfaf.org/database/search_name.php?ALLNAMES=Berberis.
 
While many are very tart and used only for preserves, some of the better fruits are said to be good dried like raisins or eaten fresh. B. buxifolia, a South American species, can also be used green as a gooseberry substitute. The biggest drawback to barberry fruits seems to be the high percentage of seeds present.
 
While there was no information regarding nutritional or antioxidant value listed on PFAF, a quick google search turned up a lot of information. Barberry fruit extracts seem to be widely sold and promoted as a powerful antioxidant.
 
Hal
zn 6b TN
 
 
> <x-tad-bigger>----- Original Message -----</x-tad-bigger>
> <x-tad-bigger>From:</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>Richard Moyer</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> </x-tad-bigger>
> <x-tad-bigger>To:</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> </x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger>nafex@lists.ibiblio.org</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> </x-tad-bigger>
> <x-tad-bigger>Sent:</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> Thursday, November 30, 2006 2:23 AM</x-tad-bigger>
> <x-tad-bigger>Subject:</x-tad-bigger><x-tad-bigger> [NAFEX] Barberry request</x-tad-bigger>
>
> See request below from a former student.  Please weigh in with any info.
> Thanks,
> Richard
> East TN---Where the medlars are getting mushy.
>  
> "One of my colleagues from Russia brought in an interesting candy made from barberries.  These berries, as I've discovered, are the fruit from the Berberis thunbergii shrub.  I was curious if you new anything about this small, red berry, specifically if they have any nutritional or antioxidant value."
>  
>
>  
>
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