Blackberry Rubus hirsutus
Other Common Name(s):
Other plants called Blackberry:
- Phonetic Spelling
- ROO-bus her-SOO-tus
- Description
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Hirsute raspberry is a deciduous perennial shrub growing to 6 or 7 feet high and typically found in thickets, slopes, and disturbed areas. It grows easily in a good well-drained soil in sun or semi-shade and can be propagated by division in the spring. White flowers with both male and female parts appear in June and the seeds ripen from July to August into edible berries. The plant will grow in sandy, loamy, and clay soils.
Information on blackberry cultivation for home gardeners is available in the NC State Extension publication Blackberries for the Home Garden.
Diseases, Insects, and Other Plant Problems: Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Rubus
- Species:
- hirsutus
- Family:
- Rosaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- East Asia, Japan, China, Korea
- Wildlife Value:
- This plant provides nectar for pollinators.
- Edibility:
- Fruit is eaten raw or cooked and used in pies, preserves, syrups etc.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Perennial
- Shrub
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Appendage:
- Prickles
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day)
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- Loam (Silt)
- Shallow Rocky
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
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Fruit:
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Summer
- Fruit Type:
- Aggregate
- Drupe
- Fruit Description:
- Seeds ripen in July and August. Fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and used in pies and preserves. The fruit varies in size from 1/3 to 3/4 of an inch in diameter.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- White
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Saucer
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Bracts
- Colored Sepals
- Flower Size:
- 1-3 inches
- Flower Description:
- Blossoms appear in April to July. Flowers 1 to 2 inches in diameter.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Type:
- Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
- Leaf Shape:
- Lanceolate
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Doubly Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Compound leaves with 3-7 leaflets that are 1.5 inches long and lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate with soft hairs on both surfaces. Margins are serrated to doubly serrate, bases broadly cuneate to rounded and tip pointed. Leaves have irregularly place stalked glands and prickles
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Brown/Copper
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Surface:
- Hairy (pubescent)
- Stem Description:
- Branchlets reddish brown or brown, terete, with soft hairs, stalked glands, and sparse, curved prickles
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Edible Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Border
- Attracts:
- Pollinators
