Blackberry
The fruit of the blackberry (or bramble) is actually not a true berry but an aggregate fruit, composed of many small drupelets (small fruits). Blackberries are often growing wild in forest areas in temperate areas.
This page provides some basic information on blackberry together with some blackberry photos, some proverbs and quotes about blackberry, and a blackberry recipe.
Basic information on blackberry
| Scientific name: | Rubus fruticosus (and some other Rubus species) |
| Family: | Rosaceae |
| Order: | Rosales |
| English: | Blackberry Bramble Bramble raspberry |
| Dutch: | Braam Bosbraam Gewone braam |
| French: | Mûrier sauvage Ronce commune |
| German: | Brombeere |
| Italian: | Rovo comune |
| Origin: | |
| Distribution: | Northern hemisphere and South America in areas with a temperate climate. |
| Evergreen or deciduous: | Deciduous |
| Flowers: | Blackberry flowers are produced in late spring and early summer. The flowers are about 2–3 cm in diameter with five white or pale pink petals. |
| Leaves: | |
| Fruits: | The blackberry is an aggregate fruit, composed of small drupelets. When unripe they are red, later they turn black. |
| Climate and weather: | Blackberries grow in temperate climates. |
| Pollination: | Blackberries are usually pollinated by bees. Poor pollination will result in poor fruits. |
| Height: | Blackberries are bushes that can get about 2 meter tall. |
| Type of soil: | Blackberries can grow in most types of soil, but prefer deep, well-drained soils. |
| Spacing | Depending on the cultivar, black berries are spaced between 1 and 1.5 meter within rows, and 3 meter or more between rows. |
| Propagation: | There are several ways of propagation for blackberries. Common methods include: leafy stem cuttings, root cuttings, suckering, and tip layering. |
| Insect pests: | Usually insect control is not needed, but occasionally blackberries are attacked by strawberry weevil, red-necked cane borer, thrips, gall midges, or stink bugs. |
| Diseases: | Anthracnose, leaf spot, orange rust. |
| Harvesting: | Blackberries are harvested by hand picking when the fruits are ripe (black). |
| Uses: | Blackberries are eaten fresh or they are processed to make jams or sauces. They are often used as filling in cakes, often in combination with other "forest" berries. |
Blackberry photos
Proverbs
Quotes
- Pulling the plug on the BlackBerry could cost corporate America millions of dollars. The BlackBerry is more than e-mail but a handheld office, and if you shut down the BlackBerry, you shut off the data that powers American business. (Al Smith)
Who knows a proverb or quote about blackberry (the fruit)? Please send a message.
Did you know that?
- The name BlackBerry is used for a line of mobile e-mail and smartphone devices.
- There is a superstition that blackberries cannot be eaten after 15 September. The story is that the devil has urinated on the leaves.
- If you keep "walking sticks" as pets, you can try to feed them with leaves of blackberry. Many species of walking sticks will eat these leaves.
Blackberry recipes
Blackberries with cream
A very simple recipe to enjoy the true taste of blackberries. Use ripe blackberries, hand-picked by yourself in the forest. Wash them, and serve them with lots of whipped cream. Delicious !!!
Who knows another tasty recipe to enjoy blackberries? Please mail it to me.