Oregon Grape

Oregon grape or Berberis bealei originates from China, and has been distributed in America, Europe and Asia. This plant is generally taken from the wild for local use as food and medicine. As a medicinal plant, B. bealei has long been used traditionally to treat various ailments throughout ancient times. It is an important herb and is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine. However, in its use, caution is needed, because the berberine compounds contained in this plant, if used in small amounts have benefits as an effective drug, whereas if used in excessive amounts, it can cause vomiting, lower blood pressure, reduce heart rate, lethargy, and other adverse effects. This species also produces fruit that can be consumed both fresh and cooked. In addition, B. bealei is often planted by the community as an ornamental plant in gardens.

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Found growing on forest margins, weedy slopes, streamsides, roadsides and thickets; at elevations from 500 - 2,000 m. Thrives in any good garden soil. Grows well in heavy clay soils. Succeeds under quite heavy tree cover, often thriving in dense shade. Prefers a semi-shaded woodland position in a damp, slightly acid to neutral humus-rich soil.

• Stems - It has limited branches, is round, sturdy, and becomes grayish-brown as it matures, and the wood is yellow.
• Leaves - alternate, olive green, odd pinnate compound, consisting of 9-13 leaflets, obovate narrow to oval, pointed peak and sharp spikes, pointed base (cuneate), leaf edge curved backwards  and barbed teeth (2-6 teeth per side). Thick, rough, stiff, increasing in length but decreasing in width from base to apex. The petioles are often red.
• Flowers - lemon yellow, the inflorescences are dense terminal racemes. The outer and middle sepals are oval in shape, and the inner sepals are oval-oval. Petals oval-elliptical. The pistil (style) is short, 3-4 ovules.
• Fruits - globose berries, green that later turn a blue-black color, covered with a waxy coating, measure less than an inch, hanging in clusters, like grapes.

Propagated by seeds, stem cuttings, and division.

Cerebrosides, three alkaloids (berberine, palmatine, jatrorrhizine), triterpenes (ursolic acid, oleanolic acid, oleanolic acid 3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside), flavonoids (quercetin, quercetin 3-O-β-Dxylopyranoside, tamarixetin 3-O  -β-Dglucopyranoside, quercetin 3-O-β-Dxylopyranoside, isorhamnetin 3-O-α-Lrhamnopyranoside, luteolin, isorhamnetin, tricin, and chryseriol), phytosterols (stigmasterol, -sitosterol), lignans (episyringaresin, episyringaresinol, yang  bishexadecyl epiphyllate), erythro-syringoyl glycerol 8-O-β-Dglucoside, 3, 4, 5-trimethoxyphenyl-1-O-β-Dglucoside, 5,5/-dimethoxylariciresinol-4/-O-β-D-glucoside,  phenolic, steroid, phenylpropanoid group, gallic acid, and trans-cinnamic acid.

• The stem and roots are said to have the properties of "clearing heat and dry dampness, purge fire and remove toxins" and have been used for the treatment of conditions such as dampness-heat diarrhoea, dysentery, jaundice, red urine, red painful swelling eyes, toothache caused by stomach fire, sore and deep-rooted boils, swelling and abscesses.
• A decoction of the root and stems is antiphlogistic, antirheumatic, depurative and febrifuge. A decoction is used in the treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis, recurring fever and cough in rundown body systems, rheumatoid arthritis, backache, weak knees, dysentery and enteritis.
• The decoction is applied as a wash to treat eczema and dermatitis. 
• Combined with tea oil, it is used as a coating on burns.