The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

alleghaney blackberry, Alleghany blackberry, Allegheny blackberry, common blackberry, prairie rose, ronce des alléghanys, sow-teat berry

arctic blackberry, arctic raspberry, dwarf nagoonberry, nagoonberry

Habit Shrubs, 10–30 dm, armed. Herbs, 0.5–3 dm, unarmed.
Stems

biennial, erect-arching, sparsely to densely hairy, sparsely to abundantly stipitate-glandular, glands usually flattened to cupulate, not pruinose;

prickles sparse to dense, erect or slightly retrorse, stout, 4–10 mm, broad-based.

erect, thin, weak, ± woody basally, glabrous or sparsely hairy, eglandular, not pruinose.

Leaves

deciduous, palmately compound, not lustrous;

stipules filiform to narrowly lanceolate, (2–)5–15(–20) mm;

leaflets (3–)5(–7), terminal ovate to lanceolate, 7–16 × 4–9 cm, base rounded to shallowly cordate, unlobed, margins finely to coarsely serrate or doubly serrate, apex acuminate to long-attenuate, abaxial surfaces with hooked prickles on midveins, moderately hairy, moderately to densely stipitate-glandular on veins.

deciduous, simple and usually 3-lobed or ternate;

stipules ovate to lanceolate, 4–8 mm;

blade margins dentate, serrate, or doubly serrate, abaxial surfaces sparsely to moderately pubescent, eglandular.

Inflorescences

terminal on short shoots, sometimes appearing axillary, (5–)15–25-flowered, racemiform, often elongate.

axillary, 1–3-flowered.

Pedicels

unarmed or prickles sparse, hooked, densely hairy, densely short- to long-stipitate-glandular.

glabrous or sparsely to moderately pubescent, eglandular or stipitate-glandular.

Flowers

bisexual;

petals white, obovate to elliptic, rarely suborbiculate, 8–20 mm;

filaments filiform;

ovaries glabrous or glabrate.

bisexual;

petals pink to rose or magenta, obovate to oblanceolate, 8–25 mm;

outer filaments dilated basally, inner filiform;

ovaries glabrous or sparsely hairy, styles filiform.

Fruits

black, globose to cylindric, 1–2 cm;

drupelets 20–100, strongly coherent, separating with torus attached.

reddish to dark purple, globose, to 1 cm diam., rarely larger;

drupelets (10–)15–30, weakly coherent, separating with torus attached.

2n

= 14, 21, 28.

Rubus allegheniensis

Rubus arcticus

Phenology Flowering May–Jul.
Habitat Woodlands, savannas, prairies, meadows, rock outcrops, disturbed areas, dry to damp soil
Elevation 0–1600 m (0–5200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CA; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; NC; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; OK; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WI; WV; BC; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AK; CO; ME; MI; MN; MT; OR; WA; WY; AB; BC; MB; NT; NU; ON; QC; SK; YT; Eurasia
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Rubus allegheniensis consists of erect-arching, usually well-armed plants, usually densely stipitate-glandular with flattened to cupulate glands, particularly about the inflorescence.

The Menominee, Meskwaki, and Potawatomi used root extracts of Rubus allegheniensis to treat eye irritation (H. H. Smith 1923, 1928, 1933). The Ojibwa used boiled extracts of the canes as a diuretic and a root extract for treating diarrhea (Smith 1932). Rubus allegheniensis is introduced in British Columbia and California, where rare and in at least California probably no more than a waif.

Rubus montanus (Porter) Porter, a name that has been used for this species, is a later homonym of R. montanus Libert ex Lejeune.

The following nothospecies names are based on putative hybrids involving Rubus allegheniensis and: R. canadensis (R. ×forestalis L. H. Bailey, R. ×immanis Ashe); R. flagellaris (R. ×boyntonii Ashe, R. ×fraternalis L. H. Bailey [based on R. ×fraternus Brainerd & Peitersen (not R. fraternus Gremli), R. ×licens L. H. Bailey, R. ×ostryifolius Rydberg); R. pensilvanicus (R. ×avipes L. H. Bailey, R. ×floricomus Blanchard, R. ×orarius Blanchard); R. setosus (R. ×abbrevians Blanchard, R. ×aculiferus Fernald, R. ×adenocaulis Fernald, R. ×angustifoliatus L. H. Bailey, R. ×ascendens Blanchard, R. ×atwoodii L. H. Bailey, R. ×clausenii L. H. Bailey, R. ×flavinanus Blanchard, R. ×frondisentis Blanchard, R. ×perspicuus L. H. Bailey, R. ×ravus L. H. Bailey).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Subspecies 3 (3 in the flora).

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Leaves simple, usually 3-lobed.
subsp. stellatus
1. Leaves usually ternate
→ 2
2. Central leaflets ovate to rhombic, bases rounded to attenuate, not cuneate, apices usually acute; flowers 1–3; petals obovate, apex entire or slightly emarginate.
subsp. arcticus
2. Central leaflets ovate to obovate, bases cuneate, apices usually rounded; flowers solitary; petals oblanceolate to obovate, apex slightly to strongly emarginate.
subsp. acaulis
Source FNA vol. 9, p. 34. FNA vol. 9, p. 35.
Parent taxa Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Rubeae > Rubus Rosaceae > subfam. Rosoideae > tribe Rubeae > Rubus
Sibling taxa
R. arcticus, R. bartonianus, R. bifrons, R. caesius, R. canadensis, R. chamaemorus, R. cuneifolius, R. deliciosus, R. flagellaris, R. glaucifolius, R. hispidus, R. idaeus, R. illecebrosus, R. laciniatus, R. lasiococcus, R. leucodermis, R. neomexicanus, R. nivalis, R. niveus, R. nutkanus, R. occidentalis, R. odoratus, R. parviflorus, R. parvifolius, R. pascuus, R. pedatus, R. pensilvanicus, R. phoenicolasius, R. pubescens, R. repens, R. saxatilis, R. setosus, R. spectabilis, R. trivialis, R. ulmifolius, R. ursinus, R. vestitus
R. allegheniensis, R. bartonianus, R. bifrons, R. caesius, R. canadensis, R. chamaemorus, R. cuneifolius, R. deliciosus, R. flagellaris, R. glaucifolius, R. hispidus, R. idaeus, R. illecebrosus, R. laciniatus, R. lasiococcus, R. leucodermis, R. neomexicanus, R. nivalis, R. niveus, R. nutkanus, R. occidentalis, R. odoratus, R. parviflorus, R. parvifolius, R. pascuus, R. pedatus, R. pensilvanicus, R. phoenicolasius, R. pubescens, R. repens, R. saxatilis, R. setosus, R. spectabilis, R. trivialis, R. ulmifolius, R. ursinus, R. vestitus
Subordinate taxa
R. arcticus subsp. acaulis, R. arcticus subsp. arcticus, R. arcticus subsp. stellatus
Synonyms R. villosus var. montanus, R. acadiensis, R. allegheniensis var. calycosus, R. allegheniensis var. gravesii, R. allegheniensis var. neoscoticus, R. allegheniensis var. plausus, R. allegheniensis var. populifolius, R. alumnus, R. apianus, R. attractus, R. auroralis, R. campester, R. concameratus, R. fryei, R. glandicaulis, R. impos, R. inclinis, R. irregularis, R. licitus, R. montpelierensis, R. nigrobaccus, R. nuperus, R. paulus, R. pugnax, R. rosa, R. saltuensis, R. sceleratus
Name authority Porter: Bull. Torrey Bot. Club 23: 153. (1896) Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 1: 494. (1753)
Web links