Berberis microphylla, common name box-leaved barberry[1] and Magellan barberry,[2] in Spanishcalafate and michay and other names,[3] is an evergreen shrub, with simple, shiny box-like leaves. The calafate is native to southern Argentina and Chile and is a symbol of Patagonia.[4][5][6][7][8][9]
The bush grows to a height of Шаблон:Convert. It has many arching branches, each covered in many tripartite spines. The bush has many small yellow flowers in summer. Its edible blue-black berries are harvested for jams, but are eaten fresh too - a legend tells that anyone who eats a calafate berry will be certain to return to Patagonia.[10]
The calafate is grown commercially for its fruit, potential medical uses[2] and as a garden plant or bonsai. Its wood is used to make a red dye. The cultivarBerberis microphylla 'Nana' is widely available as a garden shrub, and is also used in commercial plantings as a low spiny hedge to discourage intruders, but it does not fruit.[11]
↑Ahrendt, L. W. A. (1961). Berberis and Mahonia. A taxonomic revision. J. Linn. Soc., Bot. 57(369): 1–410.
↑Landrum, L. R. 1999 [2000]. Revision of Berberis (Berberidaceae) in Chile and adjacent southern Argentina. Ann. Missouri Bot. Gard. 86(4): 793–834.
↑Hoffmann, A. (1982). Flora silvestre de Chile zona araucana. Edición 4. Ediciones Fundación Claudio Gay, Santiago, Chile. 258p.
↑Landrum, L. R. (2003). Berberidaceae. En C. Marticorena y R. Rodríguez [eds.], Flora de Chile Vol. 2(2), pp 1–23. Universidad de Concepción, Concepción.
↑Marticorena, C. & M. Quezada. (1985). Catálogo de la Flora Vascular de Chile. Gayana, Bot. 42: 1–157.
↑Zuloaga, F. O. (1997). Catálogo de las plantas vasculares de la Argentina. Monogr. Syst. Bot. Missouri Bot. Gard. 74(1–2): 1–1331.
