American dewberry
Rubus flagellaris

Family: Rosaceae

What it is like

A trailing plant. It grows 20 cm tall and spreads 2-5 m long. The old stems are woody and have hooked prickles. The leaves are alternate and compound. They have 3 leaflets. The leaflets are 8 cm long by 3 cm wide. They have double teeth along the edge. There are 1-5 flowers at the ends of the stems. The flowers are white. The fruit is compound and fleshy. They can be 2.5 cm long. They turn purple to black when ripe.

There are about 250 Rubus species.

Where it is found

It is a temperate plant. It needs well drained soil. It can grow in light shade. It suits hardiness zone 4. In Montreal Botanical gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Australia, Canada, Mexico, North America, Tasmania, USA

How it is used for food

The ripe fruit are eaten raw. They are also used in pies, jams, jellies, sauces, fruit juices and wine. The dried leaves are used for tea. The young shoots are peeled and eaten raw.

It is cultivated.

Edible parts

Fruit, leaves - tea, shoots

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

American dewberry, Amerikan Bogurtleni, Canadian blackberry, Common dewberry, Field dewberry, Halifax Blackberry, Low blackberry, Northern dewberry, Smooth Blackberry, Trailing blackberry, Zarzamora

Synonyms

Rubus apogaeus L. H. Bailey; Rubus baileyanus Britton; Rubus canadensis L.; Rubus flagellaris var. occidualis L. H. Bailey; Rubus flagellaris var. roseaplenus E. J. Palmer & Steyerm.; Rubus procumbens Muhl.; Rubus procumbens subsp. subunifloris (Rydb.) Focke; Rubus subiniflorus Rydb.; Rubus geophilus Blanch.; and others