Žutika is known in our country under the names yellow pomegranate, barberry, yellow thorn, common barberry and sour thorn, and bears the Latin name Berberis vulgaris. The barberry bush can grow up to 3 meters high, and its branches are covered with sharp thorns. The leaves are elliptical, and they bloom in May and June. The flowers are yellow and form numerous hanging clusters. After flowering, these bunches will develop fruits in the form of oblong red and juicy beans about 1 cm long.
Žutika grows wild along hedges, along roads and forest edges, along hedgerows, etc. Žutika as a shrub is easily noticeable, especially when it’s in bloom, but also when it’s covered with red fruits.
History of the barberry
Žutika has been known since ancient times when refreshing jelly was prepared from it, but it was also served candied like other berries. Rouen, a French city was famous for its excellent barberry jam.
Historically, it was also used as a decorative plant because a barberry bush that is covered with thorns, planted in the form of a hedge, provides excellent protection against the invasion of various animals and insects, and the bark, leaves and fruits could be used for medicinal and culinary purposes.
Ancient Arab physicians found barberry useful for fever and diarrhea, and in India preparations of the root bark were thought to help cases of psoriasis. In China, it was believed that its regular consumption leads to a healthy and long life. Diluted barberry juice was drunk against the plague in Egypt. Many healing properties of barberry, which were discovered in antiquity, were later scientifically proven.
Cultivation and harvesting of barberries
In our area, barberry as a plant is very rare, but you can try to grow its bush. It is best to plant žutika in spring, and sometimes planting can be done in autumn.
It will grow equally well in the shade and in the sun. An open area suits her and she doesn’t mind a windy area. The soil for planting barberries should be neutral, although a slight increase in acidity is allowed. However, if the acidity is higher than 7, it is recommended to add lime to the soil. This should be done during soil preparation or during planting.
In addition to lime, the soil should be fertilized with fertilizers such as humus, garden soil or compost, super phosphate, slaked lime and wood ash. When planting barberry, remember that although it can grow in the sun, it will lose the decorative appearance of the leaves as they will most likely fade.
Žutika can be propagated by seeds, cuttings, by dividing the main bush, from side shoots of the bush, and by transplanting saplings.
When choosing planting material, it is important to know that every method of barberry propagation has a certain disadvantage. For example, cuttings will develop a root system very slowly, seeds often have low germination, and if you significantly damage the root in the process of dividing the bush, you will damage the health of the plant. Likewise, young shoots can only be obtained from certain types of barberries.
The leaves should be picked just before flowering, making sure that they are uniformly green on the underside, because those with brown spots are infected with grain rust.
Barberry fruits are harvested when they are fully ripe.
Preparation of barberry tea
Barberry tea is prepared by putting 2 tablespoons of ground and dry barberry root bark in 1 liter of cold water and leaving it overnight. The next morning, the mixture is heated for 5 minutes on low heat. Then it is filtered and the entire amount is drunk during the day, in sips. Tea prepared in this way is one of the best medicines for cleansing the blood, spleen, kidneys, liver, jaundice and anemia.
Another way to prepare barberry tea is to put 2 teaspoons of dry bark of barberry roots and leaves in ¼ liter of boiling water and strain after 5 minutes. Drink 1 to 2 cups of this tea as a medicine to improve liver function and better secretion of bile.
The use of barberries
Barberries are medicinal leaves, root and fruits. Barberry root bark is yellow on the inside and is removed in late autumn and then dried in the air. Barberry fruits and leaves are rich in vitamin C and other organic acids, hence the popular name sour thorn.
Jaundice acts on the body in such a way that:
- increases urination
- promotes the excretion of water from the body
- regulates the chair
- helps in the treatment of anemia
- reduces leg cramps
- relieves hemorrhoids
- helps to eliminate white washing in women
- helps to control skin rash
A number of alkaloids have been discovered in the barberry root bark, and in the first place they are the alkaloids berbamine, oxyacanthine and oxyacanthine-vinetin. Furthermore, the active substances found in the root bark are starch, hemicellulose, sugar and columbanin. It is the alkaloid berberine that is attributed a number of medicinal properties, as it acts on the excretion of bile and improves blood circulation and lowers blood pressure.
Possible side effects of consuming barberry tea
There is a certain note regarding the consumption of barberry preparations, which is that it is necessary to strictly adhere to the prescribed quantities for individual preparations, because only then will they be fully effective. It is especially important to strictly follow the instructions on the use of the bark and leaves, because their excessive consumption can cause poisoning.
Preparations made from barberry fruits are considered to be completely harmless, but you should also be careful when consuming them and definitely consult a doctor before using preparations made from barberry for medicinal purposes.
It is also important to know that barberry should not be consumed during pregnancy because barberry preparations affect the uterus.
The fruits, i.e. the berries, are edible only when they are ripe, and the fresh leaves and flowers are poisonous.
Drying and storing barberries
The fruits, or barberry berries, are harvested in August and September, and the bark from the roots in late autumn or early spring.
The berries are picked without the stem, and in order to be good for use, they must retain their natural red color after drying. If you picked the berries with the stem, then after drying it is necessary to remove the stems. Fresh berries can be dried in the air or in the sun. During rain and high humidity, the berries can be carefully dried in the oven at a moderately warm temperature.
It is less common to collect the entire barberry root, although it can be found in pieces on the market.
The bark from young branches is peeled and dried in the shade or in the sun. If it is a small amount of peeled bark from the roots, then after collection it can be strung on a thread and dried in the shade.
All dried barberry parts are stored in glass containers that can be tightly closed, in a cool and dark place.
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