Rubus

Rubus is a large genus of flowering plants in the rose family, Rosaceae, subfamily Rosoideae. Raspberries, blackberries, and dewberries are common, widely distributed members of the genus. Most of these plants have woody stems with prickles like roses; spines, bristles, and gland-tipped hairs are also common in the genus. The Rubus fruit, sometimes called a bramble fruit, is an aggregate of drupelets.

Most species are hermaphrodites, Rubus chamaemorus being an exception.

The blackberries, as well as various other Rubus species with mounding or rambling growth habits, are often called brambles. However, this name is not used for those like the raspberry that grow as upright canes, or for trailing or prostrate species, such as most dewberries, or various low-growing boreal, arctic, or alpine species.

The generic name means blackberry in Latin and was derived from the word ruber, meaning "red".

The scientific study of brambles is known as "batology".

Examples of the hundreds, if not thousands, of species of Rubus include:

• Rubus allegheniensis – Allegheny blackberry
• Rubus arcticus – Arctic raspberry
• Rubus armeniacus – Himalayan blackberry
• Rubus caesius – European dewberry
• Rubus canadensis – Canadian blackberry
• Rubus chamaemorus – Cloudberry
• Rubus coreanus - Bokbunja
• Rubus cuneifolius – sand blackberry
• Rubus fruticosus agg. – blackberry
• Rubus glaucifolius - San Diego raspberry
• Rubus hayata-koidzumii (R. calycinoides) – creeping raspberry
• Rubus hochstetterorum - Azorean blackberry
• Rubus idaeus – European red raspberry
• Rubus laciniatus - cutleaf evergreen blackberry
• Rubus lasiococcus - roughfruit berry
• Rubus leucodermis – whitebark raspberry or western raspberry
• Rubus occidentalis – black raspberry
• Rubus odoratus – flowering raspberry
• Rubus parviflorus – thimbleberry
• Rubus parvifolius - small-leaf bramble (Australia)
• Rubus pensilvanicus – Pennsylvania blackberry
• Rubus phoenicolasius – wineberry
• Rubus pubescens - dwarf red blackberry
• Rubus saxatilis – stone bramble
• Rubus spectabilis – salmonberry
• Rubus strigosus – American red raspberry
• Rubus trifidus - Japanese blackberry
• Rubus ursinus – trailing blackberry

The genus also includes numerous hybrids, both natural and bred by man, such as the loganberry (Rubus × loganobaccus).

See also: List of Lepidoptera that feed on Rubus