I’d like to join you in this post to tell you about the Blackberry plant identification by its images and compare its appearance with Berries similar to this plant.
The blackberry plant is a woody shrub that includes different species and cultivars of the Rubus genus with delicious dark purple to black berries (called blackberries) and compound green leaves.
If you love the sweet-tart flavour of wild blackberries but are concerned about poisonous wild blackberry plants, you must know there aren’t any poisonous blackberries. However, there are several blackberry look-alike plants such as Poisons Ivy. You can easily distinguish it from blackberry with its whitish fruits.
In this article, first I will provide you with some key features of the blackberry plant and then will discuss 5 blackberry-like plants belonging to the Rubus genus in the Rosaceae family that will be useful for wild blackberry plant identification and even its domestic cultivars.
➡ You can also hear the audio version of this article.
In this part, I want to help you to identify the blackberry bush from other similar plants. I will tell you about its appearance, so, keep reading.
Blackberry tree or bush? If it is your question too, you must know the Blackberry plants are perennial shrubs, but due to they can grow up to 3 meters tall and are very messy, people may think they are trees. Blackberry plants have long arching canes that emerge from a central crown or root system.
There is a tree with blackberry-like fruit that I discuss in the following.
Blackberry Stems (Canes): The canes of blackberry plants come in green or reddish-brown colours. They are covered with curved and quite sharp thorns or prickles. Another feature of their canes is their flexibility which causes them to tend to arch or trail growth along the ground. The Canes can also form dense thickets.
Blackberry leaves: blackberry leaf identification is a common way for blackberry plant identification. This plant has compound leaves with three to five leaflets, although some species may have more.
You find its leaflets in oval or lance-shaped with serrated edges. Another leaf feature of their leaves is the colour of leaves that are dark green on the upper surface and light green on the lower surface.
Blackberry Flowers: you see the pale pink or white flowers in late spring or early summer. The flowers have five petals that are arranged in clusters (racemes) on canes.
Blackberry Fruits: this plant is popular due to its delicious fruits known as blackberries. Its small fruits are made up of multiple juicy drupelets that are dark purple or black when they ripe. Its fruits have a sweet-tart flavour. There are several blackberry-like fruits that I will discuss in the following to help you with Blackberry identification. Keep reading.
If you ask me the easiest way to identify blackberries or other plants is to get help from a good plant identification tool. The “House Plant Identifier” can work well in this issue. It’s a free online tool with advanced algorithms and an almost comprehensive collection of more than 14000 plant species that let it identify indoor and outdoor plants including trees, flowers, ornamental, and wild plants.
The “House plant identifier” can also detect plant diseases and various mushroom species such as yellow, brown, or black mushrooms. working with it is very easy and this tool can tell you the name of the intended plant in only 2 seconds with high accuracy. So, search it on Google for the blackberry plant identification.
Although blackberry plants include various species and cultivars, other species in the Rubus genus have a similar appearance to blackberries such as raspberries. To Blackberry identification (wild and domesticated forms), in the following, you can find 5 of them with their images and a brief overview of their appearance. I also will tell you about their habitat which help you in their identification.
Scientific name: Rubus idaeus
Other Common names: Red Raspberry, European Raspberry
Habitat: Although Raspberry is native to Europe (such as the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, and Russia) and northern Asia, it is also found in the United States.
Raspberry Identification
The similarity between Raspberries and blackberries and blackberries: that both of them belong to the same genus, Rubus, and have similar growth habits. About their appearance, Raspberries and blackberries have arching canes with thorns.
Distinguishing Features: The main difference between these species lies in their fruits: the raspberries’ mature fruit is red or yellow with a hollow core, while blackberries’ fruit is dark purple or black with solid drupelets when ripe.
Scientific name: Rubus caesius and Rubus flagellaris
Other Common names: European Dewberry (Rubus caesius), American Dewberry (Rubus flagellaris)
Habitat: There are two species of this plant; one of them is native to Europe and is called the European Dewberry (Rubus caesius) and the other is native to eastern and central North America and is called the American Dewberry (Rubus flagellaris).
Dewberry Identification
Dewberries are blackberry-like trees belonging to the Rubus genus. Although they have a low-growing habit, they have trailing canes with roots at the tips that give them dense mats. Dewberries are trees that have blackberry-like fruits. Their fruits are small and black fruits that resemble the blackberries.
If you want to know how to distinguish between Dewberries and blackberries, dewberries are typically smaller and have a milder flavor.
Scientific name: Rubus ursinus x idaeus
Other Common names: –
Habitat: you must know that the Youngberry is not a natural plant species. It is a hybrid between blackberry and raspberry that was developed in the United States.
Youngberry Identification
As I told above, Youngberries are a cross between blackberries and raspberries, so they show characteristics of both parents that may confused with blackberries. For example, the arching growth of canes, thorns, or fruits that resemble blackberries.
Their distinguishing feature can be fruits that are larger and reddish-black when ripe.
Scientific name: Rubus phoenicolasius
Other Common names: Japanese Wineberry, Wine Raspberry, Wineberry Raspberry
Habitat: This berry is native to Asia. You find it particularly in China, Japan, and Korea. However, this plant can be found in some parts of North America too.
Wineberry Identification
You should know that Wineberries are an invasive species that have similar growth habits to blackberries, for example, they have thorny canes or arching growth. But their red fruits are smaller than blackberries and more similar to raspberries. Their distinguishing feature is the fruits that are covered in fine red hairs.
Scientific name: Rubus armeniacus
Other Common names: Armenian Blackberry, Himalayan Berry, Evergreen Blackberry
Habitat: I don’t know why this berry is called Himalayan blackberry, because, despite its name, it is not native to the Himalayan region. You may be surprised if I say its origin, is Western Europe.
However, it can be found in North America, including the Pacific Northwest. Although it is a non-native species in the USA (however known as Armenian blackberry), this plant is highly invasive in many regions.
Himalayan blackberry Identification
This plant in terms of black fruits, growth patterns, and thorny canes resembles the blackberries, but you can distinguish them due to its tendency to form impenetrable thickets and larger fruits that are more elongated.
After reading this article, you know about blackberry plant identification and can easily distinguish it from other berries in the Rubus genus including Raspberry, Dewberry, Youngberry, Wineberry, and Himalayan blackberry. Do you know other blackberry look-alike plants? Do you prefer to collect wild blackberries or buy them? Have you ever spotted a poisonous Ivy? Did you identify it? How? Please tell us about your experiences below this page.
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Hi, I’m Elaheh. My Academic major is plant protection, and houseplants are my expertise. As a houseplant lover, my house is full of indoor plants and it is my passion to take care of them. Hence, I’m here to share my knowledge and experience about growing healthy houseplants. I am also a plant protection advisor, so feel free to ask me any questions you may have.