Berberis microphylla, common name box-leaved barberry[2] and Magellan barberry,[3] in Spanishcalafate and michay and other names,[4] 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.[5][6][7][8][9][10]Berberis microphylla should not be confused with Mahonia microphylla, native to China.[11]
Description
The bush grows to a height of 1.0 to 1.5 m (3 ft 3 in to 4 ft 11 in). It has many arching branches, each covered in many tripartite spines. The bush has many small yellow flowers in summer. It produces blue-black berries.
Uses
Fruits in spring
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.[12] It is also used as an additive in alcoholic beverages such as calafate beer.[13]
The calafate is grown commercially for its fruit, potential medical uses[3] 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.[14]
^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.
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