Plant: Shrubs to 3 m tall Leaves: odd-pinnate, 3-10 cm long; leaflets (3-)5-7(-9), thick, rigid, ovate to lanceolate, slightly glaucous, dull gray-green, 10-25 mm long, 5-15 mm wide; veins obscure; teeth of leaflet margin 3-4(-6) pairs, 2-4 mm long, each tooth bearing a spine 1-3 mm long Inflorescence: 3-10 flowered, racemose to subumbellate, 2-7 cm long; pseudopedicels (4-)8-12(-15) mm long; bracts 1-3 mm long; bracteoles 2, ovate, acute, reddish, 1.5 mm long, one appressed to the calyx, the other 4-6 mm below it Flowers: sepals 6 or 9; outer sepals 0.50-1.75 mm long, ovate, subacute, whitish-yellow; inner sepals 6.5-7.0 mm long, obovate, rounded, slenderly clawed; petals 6, 3.5 mm long, the apices entire, the bases scarcely clawed or cuneate with oblong, acute, marginal glands; stamens 4 mm, subtruncate to slightly rounded; filaments with two lateral teeth at apex; ovules 5-8 Fruit: berry, ovoid, yellow, red or blue-black, 1.5 cm long, sometimes becoming more or less dry and inflated at maturity, bearing sessile stigma; SEEDS ellipsoid, dull reddish-purple, 3 mm long Misc: Mts. of n and c AZ; 1200-2150 m (4000-7000 ft); Apr-Jul REFERENCES: Laferrière, Joseph E. 2001. Berberidaceae. J. Ariz. – Nev. Acad. Sci. Volume 26(1).