- Name
- Blackberry
- Common Names
- Scientific Name
- Rubus spp
- Family
- Rosaceae (Rose Family)
- Description
- Rubus alleghaniensis (common blackberry); Rubus canadensis (smooth/thornless blackberry) A woody shrub with canes 3-6 feet tall that are initially erect but often bend downward to re-root in the ground. Native to Eastern North America, now also cultivated. Common blackberry (Rubus alleghaniensis) canes are covered with stout prickles. Fruit (~¾" long and 1/3" across) develop in the summer, ripening from white to red to black. They are seedy and have a sweet flavor when fully ripened.
- Leaves
- Leaves are usually trifoliate or palmately compound with long petioles. The leaflets are up to 4" long and 3" across; A typical leaflet is usually ovate with coarse, doubly serrate margins.
- Flowers
- The canes develop racemes with white, 5-petalled flowers. There is little or no floral fragrance.
- Bloom Time
- March to June
- Pollen Source
- good
- Nectar Source
- good (*can be a major nectar source in the southeast)
- Pollen Color
- light grey
- Native to NC
- Yes
