i hate these things with the passion of the burning red hot sun ...

dad had a line of them on the driveway where the basketball hoop was [planted a decade prior to the hoop] ...

i hate the thorns .. i hate pruning them.. i hate them.. i hate them.. i hate them ... and if you give me a shiny penny.. i will tell you how i really feel ... lol

seriously .. you are thinking of planting a barbed plant.. that will need to be sheared/pruned up to twice a year.. and plant 3 of them.. what are you thinking.. lol .. is there no alternative?????

whatever you decide is fine with me.. just had to share my hatred ...

ken

ps: BTW .. i was given two of the globe types last year.. the price was right.. and being the globe type .. i wont need to shear them ... go figure on that ... 5 acres is a whole other world to a suburban 50 x 100 lot ... and i dont have a b-ball hoop ..

You do realize Japanese barberry is on your state's invasive species list.....?

OK - 'Rose Glow' is not a mounding form; it is an arching, fountaining form and will take pruning to keep to a 4' or so "mound". Ken alludes to it, but my recommendation for barberries (which I love and are not invasive in my area) is simply don't plant one that requires frequent pruning -- it hurts!!

From a design standpoint, I would prefer to see three shrubs of the same type planted together rather than 3 different barberries. If you would like to introduce different ones, then consider planting them in groups elsewhere.

LOL. I got the same reaction from my husband.

I know they're known for being invasive, but wasn't aware they were on this list for my particular state. Why do the garden centers sell them????

Actually, I do have two pygmys that I plan to keep.

Ok, so barberry is out of the question.

Yes they are listed as an invasive plant here, however they are not on the list of banned plants. Also, invasiveness potential can be drastically different depending on the cultivar as some are nearly sterile. Rose Glow unfortunately is quite fertile. As are many of the large older varieties.

I'll gladly disagree with Ken as to having to shear them twice a year. You can pick a variety to fit the spot- mature size ranges from 2'x2' to 6'x10'. Rose Glow maxes out at a beautiful 5'x6'. As far as shearing Crimson Pygmy I've never quite understood the reason. its mature size is 2x3 and has a naturally dense form. If that's too big go with Weigela Midnight Wine or a sun tolerant burgundy Heuchera.

As far as gold varieties go-which one are you looking at? My recommendation would be stay away from Gold Nugget as it is a terrible grower here in my experience. Bonanza Gold and Gold Beret are much better for a small gold. Any of the larger gold varieties are good growers.