Oregon Grape
Mahonia aquifolium
A western native with glossy, holly-like leaves that turn bronze in winter, yellow flowers in early spring and blue berries for birds, at home in shade, and deer leave it alone. Shelter it from wind and winter sun, which scorch the leaves; it suckers and can turn invasive outside its native range.
- Mature size
- 4.5 × 3.5 ft
- 1.4 × 1.1 m, tall × wide
- Hardiness
- Zones 5a–8b
- USDA
- Sun
- Part sun to part shade
- Water
- Dry to moist
- Blooms
- Mar–Apr
Oregon Grape at its mature size
A mature Oregon Grape grows 3 to 6 feet tall and 2 to 5 feet wide.
Drawn to scale beside a 5 ft 9 in person. With VeraScape, you see it at this size in your own yard.
Typical mature size, unpruned. Sources: NC State Extension, The Morton Arboretum.
Growing Oregon Grape
- Grows well in
- The Plains and Mountain West and the Pacific Northwest.
- Good for
- Hedge, small space, foundation planting, specimen, shade garden, drought tolerant, deer resistant, and pollinators
- Leaves
- Evergreen
- Native to
- Pacific Northwest
Spacing for a hedge
VeraScape spaces plants so their grown canopies just touch. For Oregon Grape, that’s about 3.5 ft apart, center to center.
Place a row in your own yard and VeraScape spaces them at their mature width, so you can see whether they’ll crowd the walk.
See Oregon Grape in your yard before you dig
Visualize it at its true size, alongside the rest of your design.
Other mahonias
Fortune's MahoniaAll drawn to the same scale.