''Mahonia repens'' commonly known as creeping mahonia, creeping Oregon grape,Neil L. Jennings creeping barberry, or prostrate barberry, is a species of '' Mahonia'' native to the Rocky Mountains and westward areas of

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

, from British Columbia and Alberta in the north through Arizona and New Mexico, then into northwest Mexico by some reports. It is also found in many areas of California and the Great Basin region in Nevada.

Description

''Mahonia repens'' is a typical mahonia with conspicuous matte blue berries. It grows as a subshrub. The yellow flowers appear in the middle of spring, and the blue berries in early summer. Although it is evergreen, in fall the leaves turn bronze. The plant is found at elevations from to .

Taxonomy

Some botanists place ''Mahonia repens'', and the genus ''Mahonia'' as a whole, in the barberry genus '' Berberis''.Flora of North America vol 3.
/ref> In this case, the scientific name may be given as ''Berberis repens''. Additionally, some botanists treat the plant as a subspecies of tall Oregon grape (''Berberis aquifolium''), in which case the scientific name ''Berberis aquifolium'' var. ''repens'' is applied.

Distribution and habitat

It is native to Northern America, and found in US states of Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, New Mexico, Texas, Arizona, California, Nevada and Utah. It is also found in Canada, within the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia. It is widespread, and found at low to mid elevation on dry plateaus, in forests and on foothills.

Uses

The berries are edible but are considered bitter, and used to make jellies. The Tolowa and

Karok The Karuk people are an indigenous people of California, and the Karuk Tribe is one of the largest tribes in California. Karuks are also enrolled in two other federally recognized tribes, the Cher-Ae Heights Indian Community of the Trinidad Ran ...

Indians of Northwest California used the roots for a blood and cough tonic. The

Hopi The Hopi are a Native American ethnic group who primarily live on the Hopi Reservation in northeastern Arizona, United States. As of the 2010 census, there are 19,338 Hopi in the country. The Hopi Tribe is a sovereign nation within the Unite ...

, Paiute,

Navajo The Navajo (; British English: Navaho; nv, Diné or ') are a Native American people of the Southwestern United States. With more than 399,494 enrolled tribal members , the Navajo Nation is the largest federally recognized tribe in the United ...

, Shoshoni,

Blackfoot The Blackfoot Confederacy, ''Niitsitapi'' or ''Siksikaitsitapi'' (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or " Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Bla ...

, Cheyenne, Mendocino, and other tribes also used the plant for medicinal, food, and ceremonial needs. Native Americans also used the wood of the stem to produce yellow dyes to stain woven baskets.

Cultivation

Creeping mahonia is cultivated as an ornamental plant for use in natural landscaping, and in water conserving, drought tolerant, traditional residential, native plant habitat, and wildlife gardens. It is a low water-needing ground cover for shade and brighter habitats, and in gardens under oaks to reduce or eliminate irrigation that can threaten mature Quercus trees. Berries and foliage are resistant to browsing by deer. It is a year-round attractive, hardy plant, tolerant of drought, frost, and heat, so it is popular with landscape designers and gardeners. It can provide good ground cover in a cold situation. In garden conditions, and where their ranges overlap in nature, this species hybridizes readily with Oregon-grape (''Mahonia aquifolium''), and the hybrids are less prostrate in their habit than the pure stock.

References

Other sources

* Beetle, A. A. Recommended plant names. Univ. Wyoming Agr. Exp. Sta. Res. J. 31. 1970 (Names Beetle) * Correll, D. S. & M. C. Johnston Manual of the vascular plants of Texas. 1970 (F Tex) * Erhardt, W. et al. Zander: Handwörterbuch der Pflanzennamen, 17. Auflage. 2002 (Zander ed17) * FNA Editorial Committee Flora of North America. 1993- (F NAmer) * Hickman, J. C., ed. The Jepson manual: higher plants of California. 1993 (F CalifJep) * Hitchcock, C. L. et al. Vascular plants of the Pacific Northwest. 1955-1969 (F Pacif NW) * Kearney, T. H. & R. H. Peebles Arizona flora, ed. 2. 1969 (F Ariz) * Martin, W. C. & C. R. Hutchins A flora of New Mexico. 1980 (F New Mex) * McGuffin, M., J. T. Kartesz, A. Y. Leung, & A. O. Tucker Herbs of commerce, ed. 2. 2000 (Herbs Commerce ed2) * Welsh, S. L. et al. A Utah flora. Great Basin Naturalist Mem. 9. 1987 (F Utah)

External links

''Mahonia repens'' - UC/CalPhotos Gallery
{{Taxonbar, from=Q164154 repens Flora of Western Canada Flora of the Northwestern United States Flora of the Southwestern United States Plants used in Native American cuisine Plants used in traditional Native American medicine Plants described in 1828 Garden plants of North America Bird food plants Drought-tolerant plants Groundcovers Flora without expected TNC conservation status