Mahonia (Oregon Grape): Shade-Tolerant, Bird-Planted Volunteer

Those spiny-leaved, yellow-flowering shrubs volunteering under pines are Mahonia (often Mahonia aquifolium), called Oregon grape for the dusky-blue berry clusters that follow spring blooms. Birds eat the berries and disperse seeds widely.

Mahonia thrives in dense shade where little else grows, but it can invade natural areas. Enjoy it in cultivated beds; remove seedlings from adjacent woods.