Rubus laciniatus

Rubus laciniatus, the cutleaf evergreen blackberry or evergreen blackberry, is a Eurasian species of Rubus. It is an introduced species elsewhere, often being considered invasive.

Description

A prickly trailing plant. It keeps growing from year to year. The leaflets are smaller than Rubus fruticosus and are almost triangle shaped. The leaflet at the end is usually the largest and is deeply lobed. There are teeth around these lobes. The fruit are black when ripe. Thornless kinds have been produced.

Edible Uses

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked. It is large, sweet, and juicy with a fine flavour, and about 20mm in diameter.

Traditional Uses

The fruit are eaten raw. They are also used for jellies, jams and pies.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Medicinal Uses

None known

Distribution

It is a temperate plant. Tasmania Herbarium.

Where It Grows

Australia, Britain, Europe, North America, Tasmania, USA,

Cultivation

Easily grown in a good well-drained loamy soil in sun or semi-shade. This species is a blackberry with biennial stems, it produces a number of new stems each year from the perennial rootstock, these stems fruit in their second year and then die. The plant produces apomictic flowers, these produce fruit and viable seed without fertilization, each seedling is a genetic copy of the parent. Sometimes cultivated for its edible fruit, it is a very vigorous and productive plant. There is at least one named variety. 'Oregon Cutleaf Thornless' is high yielding with good flavoured fruits and no prickles on the stems, thus making it easier to harvest. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus.

Propagation

Seed requires stratification and is best sown in early autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires one month stratification at about 3°c and should be sown as early as possible in the year. Prick out seedlings when large enough to handle and grow on in a cold frame, then plant out into permanent positions in late spring of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood can be taken in July/August in a frame. Tip layering can be done in July, with plants set out in autumn. Division is possible in early spring or just before leaf-fall in autumn.

Other Uses

A purple to dull blue dye is obtained from the fruit.

Notes

There are about 250 Rubus species.

Dangerous Lookalikes

This plant can be confused with the following toxic species. Always verify identification carefully before consuming any wild plant.

DEADLY

Red Baneberry

Actaea rubra

Walter Siegmund (talk)

Safe

Cut-leaved blackberry

Rubus laciniatus

(c) Harry Hill, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Harry Hill

Red Baneberry: Short herbaceous plant (no thorns), berries on thick red stems, each berry has a single seed, compound sharply-toothed leaves.

Cut-leaved blackberry: Thorny woody canes (brambles), aggregate berry made of many drupelets, berries pull easily from receptacle.

Synonyms

Also Known As

Evergreen blackberry, Laciniate bramble, Parsley-leaf bramble, Oregon evergreen blackberry

References (16)

• Curtis, W.M., 1956, The Students Flora of Tasmania Vol 1 p 169
• Dashorst, G.R.M., and Jessop, J.P., 1998, Plants of the Adelaide Plains & Hills. Botanic Gardens of Adelaide and State Herbarium. p 76
• Facciola, S., 1998, Cornucopia 2: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, p 209
• Hedrick, U.P., 1919, (Ed.), Sturtevant's edible plants of the world. p 577
• Hort. berol. 2: t. 82. 1806

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