North Carolina Wildflowers

by Jeffrey S. Pippen | Back to Jeff's Plant Page | Jeff's Nature Pages


Rosaceae > Rubus (blackberry, raspberry)

Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius) Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Person Co., NC
13 June 2006

Common in the coastal plain and uncommon in the piedmont of NC in dry soils.

Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Duke Forest, Durham Co., NC
30 June 2019
Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius) Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Person Co., NC
13 June 2006

Leaves on flowering stems have 3 leaflets and are fuzzy gray-white below.

Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Duke Forest, Durham Co., NC
30 June 2019
Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Duke Forest, Durham Co., NC
30 June 2019
Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Duke Forest, Durham Co., NC
30 June 2019
Sand Blackberry (Rubus cuneifolius)
Duke Forest, Durham Co., NC
30 June 2019

Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus) Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus)
Orange Co., NC
1 May 2006

This is the common blackberry along roadsides across North Carolina. Flowering in the spring, it is an important nectar source for many spring butterflies.

Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus) Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus)
Orange Co., NC
1 May 2006

Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus) Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus)
Orange Co., NC
16 Aug 2006

Fruits are delicious!

Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus) Sawtooth Blackberry (Rubus argutus)
Orange Co., NC
17 May 2005

Swarms of blooms attract nectaring butterflies in the spring.


Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Probably statewide in North Carolina, this species is similar to Sawtooth Blackberry, differing most obviously in the shape of the base of the terminal leaflets. Note that the Flora of North America will lump the two species.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Fruit retains its receptacle when removed from the plant, so this is one of the blackberries.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Floricanes with 3 leaflets per leaf, pedicels and midribs armed with prickles.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Leaf undersides pubescent but not grayish-tomentose.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Primocane leaves have 5 leaflets and the terminal leaflet base is more or less rounded.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

This and the terminal leaflet above are ~1.7 and 1.4 times longer than wide respectively.

Pennsylvania Blackberry Rubus pensilvanicus
Disturbed roadside forest edge in Durham Co., NC
15 June 2009

Prickles are stout based and recurved.


Swamp Dewberry (Rubus hispidus) Swamp Dewberry (Rubus hispidus)
Alleghany Co., NC
1 July 2006

Common statewide in NC in moist to wet soils.

Swamp Dewberry (Rubus hispidus) Swamp Dewberry (Rubus hispidus)
Alleghany Co., NC
1 July 2006

This is a low, creeping member of the genus Rubus.


dewberry (Rubus sp.) One of the dewberries (Rubus sp.)
Roadside in Sandhills Gamelands in Scotland Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

dewberry (Rubus sp.) One of the dewberries (Rubus sp.)
Roadside in Sandhills Gamelands in Scotland Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

dewberry (Rubus sp.) One of the dewberries (Rubus sp.)
Roadside in Sandhills Gamelands in Scotland Co., NC
20 Apr 2008

dewberry (Rubus sp.) One of the dewberries (Rubus sp.)
Roadside in Sandhills Gamelands in Scotland Co., NC
20 Apr 2008


Black Raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) Black Raspberry (Rubus occidentalis)
Buncombe Co., NC
8 July 2006

Statewide in North Carolina but common only in the mountains, Black Raspberry grows along roadsides, thickets, and various habitats. Like all raspberries when picked, the fruit you hold in your hand is hollow, leaving the "receptacle" intact on the plant. When you pick blackberries, the receptacle breaks off with the fruit, resulting in solid "berries".


Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus) Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus)
Buncombe Co., NC
8 July 2006

Note simple, palmately veined leaves and deep, raspberry-colored flowers. Flowering Raspberry grows commonly in the NC mountains.

Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus) Flowering Raspberry (Rubus odoratus)
Buncombe Co., NC
8 July 2006


Red Raspberry (Rubus idaeus) Red Raspberry (Rubus idaeus)
Quebec, Canada
5 Aug 2005

Rare at higher elevations in the NC mountains, this species is the same as the cultivated Red Raspberry and is common in the northern US and southern Canada.


Annotated habitat and distribution information listed above is from Radford, Ahles, & Bell. 1968. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. UNC Press; and from personal observations and discussions with Will Cook, Harry LeGrand, and Bob Wilbur. Common names from personal experience and supplemented by the following resources USDA plants website, Flora of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Georgia, and NatureServe.


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Created on ... May 7, 2006 | jeffpippen9@gmail.com