LATIN NAME Berberis trifoliolata (synonym: Mahonia trifiolata)
LONGEVITY Perennial
SEASON Cool
ORIGIN Native
DETAILS:
Other common names: “Algerita,” “Agrito,” “Agrillo,” and “Laredo Mahonia.”
Flowers in late winter with the fruit ripening in June.
The red, acid berries make acid jellies and wine, and are gathered by placing sheets of cloth or burlap underneath the plant and thrashing the thorny bush with a stick.
Has spiny, holly-like leaves.
Is adapted to dry, stony hillsides over most of central and west Texas.
Birds eagerly devour the berries, and the flowers are considered good bee food.
