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What are Blackberry Bushes?

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Blackberry bushes refer to hundreds of species of bushes in the family and genus of Rosaceae Rubus. Such bushes are often lovingly cultivated for their fruit, a sweet, flavorful and nutritious fruit that is not technically a berry, but is instead called an aggregate fruit. On the other hand, the aggressiveness of blackberry bushes can be the bane of gardeners or landscapers who are uninterested in growing these plants. They spread easily and most forms have sharp thorns that make them very difficult to remove. Their tenacious quality means taking severe measures to try to remove them from an area and some gardeners simply let the plants win, only attempting to limit their size by cutting them back as much as possible each year.

It could be said that blackberry bushes have covered much of the earth for a very long time. Native species can be found in North and South America, Europe and Asia. The largest areas of commercial cultivation occur in North America, and places like Oregon in the US and some parts of Mexico are now principal producers of commercially sold berries. Many people scoff at purchasing the berries in the store, though, because so many locations have species growing wild. In mid to late summer, lucky folks with an eye on berrying can do some picking in parks, on many roadsides, and elsewhere. The only trouble with picking the berries wild is they may have been exposed to pesticides or sprays unapproved for use with food substances.

Man mowing the grass
Man mowing the grass

Since blackberry bushes establish themselves well in all but the coldest regions, another choice is to purchase a few plants and grow them for berries at home. Numerous species have been developed that make taking care of the plant and picking of the fruit much simpler. For example, there are several thornless varieties of these plants that are easy to train and grow on canes so that the bushes remain well organized and accessible. A thornless variety is definitely a plus because a blackberry thorn is a pointed and vicious affair that can pierce the skin and catch on clothing, and many species of blackberry bushes are lined with thorns on their branches.

The principal trick of growing blackberry bushes is preventing their spread beyond what is desired. Growing the plants in rows and on canes is one way to keep them organized, but the bushes usually will require pruning regularly. Raspberry bushes, which are close relatives to blackberries, tend to be a little less work-intensive to grow.

It can certainly be worth it to cultivate blackberry bushes because the fruit is a nutritional powerhouse, with lots of important vitamins like C, A, folic acid, and K, and additional things like beta carotene, omega-3 fatty acids, and lutein. In most regions, the fruit is ripe when it is colored a dark purple or black, which usually occurs in mid to late summer. Cultivated related fruits like raspberry may have two cycles of fruiting, producing berries in early summer and in fall.

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Tricia has a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and has been a frequent WiseGEEK contributor for many years. She is especially passionate about reading and writing, although her other interests include medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion. Tricia lives in Northern California and is currently working on her first novel.

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Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen

Tricia has a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and has been a frequent WiseGEEK contributor for many years. She is especially passionate about reading and writing, although her other interests include medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion. Tricia lives in Northern California and is currently working on her first novel.

Learn more...

Discussion Comments

Logicfest

@Soulfox -- all too true, but here is one thing to keep in mind. Blackberries are aggressive, but dewberries are even more so. The things are so hardy that they'll spread like crazy if not maintained carefully. Planting them is easy, but keeping them under control takes a lot of work. Keep that in mind before putting some in your yard.

Soulfox

It is not surprising that people scoff at the notion of buying blackberries at the store. You can find them in abundance in the wild. Here in the beautiful South, a common blackberry-related plant is the dewberry -- a close cousin that goes in the wild and is as common as sin.

It is not unusual for people to dig up a dewberry vine or two out in the wild and plant them in their yards. They grow easily and yield a good amount of fruit. The major difference between the blackberry and the dewberry is that the latter fruit is larger. The taste is very similar and the dewberry is a hardy plant that grows and spreads with little maintenance.

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      Man mowing the grass