Blackberry Rubus idaeus
Other Common Name(s):
Other plants called Blackberry:
- Phonetic Spelling
- ROO-bus ee-DAY-us
- Description
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The raspberry is a perennial shrub that produces sweet, red edible fruits. The species is split into two main varieties, Rubus idaeus var. idaeus (European raspberry) which is native to Eurasia and Rubus idaeus var. strigosus (American red raspberry) which is native to a large part of North America. They can be differentiated by the fact that var. strigosus has glandular hairs and peeling bark that var. idaeus lacks and var. idaeus tends to grow in higher, drier uplands.
Information on blackberry cultivation for home gardeners is available in the NC State Extension publication Raspberries in the Home Gaden
VIDEO Created by Elisabeth Meyer for "Vegetables, Herbs, Fruits, and Nuts" a plant identification course offered in partnership with Longwood Gardens.
- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Fallgold'
Yellow-gold fruit; produces two crops a year - 'Heritage'
Native to Eurasia var. strigosus
Native to North America - 'Fallgold'
- 'Fallgold', 'Heritage', var. idaeus, var. strigosus
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Fallgold'
Yellow-gold fruit; produces two crops a year - 'Heritage'
Native to Eurasia var. strigosus
Native to North America - 'Fallgold'
- 'Fallgold', 'Heritage', var. idaeus, var. strigosus
- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Rubus
- Species:
- idaeus
- Family:
- Rosaceae
- Life Cycle:
- Perennial
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Division
- Stem Cutting
- Wildlife Value:
- Attracts pollinators, bees, and butterflies for its nectar. Fruit is eaten by birds and small mammals and plants provide cover.
- Play Value:
- Attracts Pollinators
- Edible fruit
- Wildlife Cover/Habitat
- Wildlife Food Source
- Edibility:
- Fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and delicious when eaten out of hand. The fruit is also used in pies, preserves, and in wines. An herb tea is made from the dried leaves and some say that a type of tea made from raspberry and blackberry leaves is an excellent coffee substitute.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Edible
- Perennial
- Shrub
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Semi-evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Arching
- Erect
- Spreading
- Growth Rate:
- Medium
- Maintenance:
- Medium
- Texture:
- Coarse
- Appendage:
- Prickles
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- 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
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Available Space To Plant:
- 3 feet-6 feet
- 6-feet-12 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Mountains
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Gold/Yellow
- Orange
- Purple/Lavender
- Red/Burgundy
- White
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Showy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Summer
- Fruit Type:
- Aggregate
- Drupe
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- Botanically the fruits are not berries (though they are usually called berries)– they are instead made of many small drupes. The fruits hold together in a hollow cone. Cultivars exist in various colors and tend to be more productive than the straight species.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Pink
- Purple/Lavender
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Panicle
- Raceme
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Summer
- Flower Shape:
- Star
- Flower Petals:
- 4-5 petals/rays
- Bracts
- Colored Sepals
- Flower Size:
- 1-3 inches
- Flower Description:
- Flowers are in clusters, but are occasionally solitary. Each flower has five petals, five sepals, five bracts, numerous stamens, and several pistils clustered on a cone-shaped core known as a receptacle. Blooms from April to June.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Deciduous
- Semi-evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Prickly
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Edible
- Leaf Type:
- Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Elliptical
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Doubly Serrate
- Serrate
- Hairs Present:
- Yes
- Leaf Length:
- 3-6 inches
- Leaf Width:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Description:
- Red raspberry leaves are usually pinnately divided into 3-5 leaflets, infrequently undivided, with pleated wrinkles. Undersides are lighter and fuzzy.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Green
- Purple/Lavender
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Stem surface varies with variety– var. strigosus has glandular hairs while var. idaeus lacks them.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Recreational Play Area
- Vertical Spaces
- Landscape Theme:
- Butterfly Garden
- Children's Garden
- Edible Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Design Feature:
- Barrier
- Screen/Privacy
- Attracts:
- Bees
- Butterflies
- Pollinators
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Problems:
- Spines/Thorns
- Weedy
