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Rosaceae FAMILY

Rubus laciniatus

Rubus laciniatus

Edibility
5/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitSemi-deciduous Shrub
GrowthFast

Easily grown in a good well-drained loamy soil in sun or semi-shade[1, 2, 3]. The plant produces apomictic flowers, these produce fruit and viable seed without fertilization, each seedling is a genetic copy of the parent[3]. Sometimes cultivated for its edible fruit, it is a very vigorous and productive plant[4]. There are several named varieties. including 'Oregon Cutleaf Thornless' which is high yielding with good flavoured fruits and no prickles on the stems, thus making it easier to harvest[5]. Although top growth is killed by fire, the plant usually resprouts very vigorously from the rootstock[6]. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus[3]. Rubus laciniatus is the only blackberry in the flora area that has leaflets so deeply lobed and dissected or has 3-lobed petals. Rare individuals bearing relatively unlobed leaflets and perianth parts may be part of the natural variation of this species or be hybrids with some other species. Putative natural hybrids have been reported with Rubus bifrons (as Rubus procerus; R. K. Bammi and H. P. Olmo 1966). Such unusual plants of Rubus laciniatus would be distinguished from the native blackberries by their thyrsiform and notably stipitate-glandular inflorescences and evergreen to late-deciduous leaves[7]. Although widely introduced in the flora area, Rubus laciniatus is a less aggressive weed than Rubus bifrons[7].

Propagation

Seed - requires stratification and is best sown in early autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires one month stratification at about 3°c and is best sown as early as possible in the year. Prick out the seedlings when they are large enough to handle and grow on in a cold frame. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame[3]. Tip layering in July. Plant out in autumn. Division in early spring or just before leaf-fall in the autumn[3]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Rubus+laciniatus>

Pollinators

Insects, Apomictic

References

  1. [1]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  2. [2]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  3. [3]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
  4. [4]Growing Unusual Fruit. — Simmons. A. E. · David & Charles; Newton Abbot. · 1972 · ISBN 0-7153-5531-7 ↩︎A very readable book with information on about 100 species that can be grown in Britain (some in greenhouses) and details on how to grow and use them.
  5. [5]Flora of the British Isles. — Clapham, Tutin and Warburg. · Cambridge University Press · 1962 · ISBN - ↩︎A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
  6. [6]Fire Effects Information System — http://www.feis-crs.org/feis/ ↩︎An on-line information site with comprehensive information on over 1,100 species of plant. Mainly developed to supply information on the effects of fire on plants and animals, it also contains a wealth of other information on the plants
  7. [7]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.
  8. [8]Mansfeld's Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Plants — http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/pls/htmldb_pgrc/f?p=185:3:4292127278597336 ↩︎Terse details of a huge range of useful plants.
  9. [9]The Oxford Book of Food Plants. — Harrison. S. Wallis. M. Masefield. G. · Oxford University Press · 1975 · ISBN - ↩︎Good drawings of some of the more common food plants from around the world. Not much information though.
  10. [10]Edible Wild Fruits and Nuts of Canada. — Turner. N. J. and Szczawinski. A. · National Museum of Natural Sciences · 1978 · ISBN - ↩︎A very readable guide to some wild foods of Canada.
  11. [11]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
  12. [12]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications · 1990 · ISBN 0-9628087-0-9 ↩︎Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.
  13. [13]Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. — Grae. I. · MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. · 1974 · ISBN 0-02-544950-8 ↩︎A very good and readable book on dyeing.
  14. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎