Rubus ulmifolius
Rubus repens
elm-leaf blackberry
dalibarde rampante, false violet, robin runaway
biennial, erect, then arching, usually moderately, rarely sparsely, hairy hairs stellate, eglandular, strongly pruinose;
prickles absent or sparse to dense, erect to hooked, stout, 3–10 mm, broad-based.
creeping, moderately appressed-hairy, eglandular or sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular, not pruinose.
persistent or nearly so, ternate to palmately compound;
stipules filiform to linear, 4–12 mm;
leaflets 3–5, terminal ovate, elliptic, or suborbiculate to obovate, 4–10 × 2–6(–9) cm, base rounded to cuneate, unlobed, margins finely to moderately serrate, apex acute or acuminate to attenuate, abaxial surfaces with hooked prickles on larger veins, densely white short-velutinous, hairs usually minute, eglandular.
deciduous, simple;
stipules lanceolate-laciniate, (2–)3–5(–8) mm;
blade ovate-orbiculate, 1.5–2.7(–3) × 1.5–3.5(–4) cm, base deeply cordate, unlobed, margins crenate to broadly dentate, apex rounded, abaxial surfaces sparsely to moderately hairy, sparsely to moderately short-stipitate-glandular.
terminal, 10–60-flowered, paniculiform or thyrsiform.
1-flowered.
unarmed or prickles moderate to dense, erect to hooked, densely short-hairy, eglandular.
moderately and retrorsely long-hairy, eglandular.
bisexual;
petals usually pink, sometimes white, obovate or elliptic to suborbiculate, 5–12 mm;
filaments filiform;
ovaries apically hairy.
bisexual;
petals absent in fertile flowers, present in sterile flowers, white, narrowly elliptic to oblanceolate, 5–8 mm;
filaments filiform;
ovaries densely hairy, styles glabrous.
black, globose to ovoid, 1–1.5 cm;
drupelets 10–40, strongly coherent, separating with torus attached.
whitish, 0.3–0.5 cm, dry;
drupelets 5–10(–15), not coherent, separating from torus, enclosed by converging sepals.
= 14.
= 14.
Rubus ulmifolius
Rubus repens
Rubus ulmifolius can be distinguished, especially from the closely related R. bifrons and R. vestitus, by its strongly pruinose stems, finely serrate leaflets, and lack of glands throughout. Unlike R. ulmifolius, strongly pruinose native Rubus species lack relatively large and showy pink petals. Some new stems developing from tip-rooting, and early leaves on such stems (especially in shade), are not whitened abaxially and are tomentose. Such unusual stems develop typical leaves and surfaces in parts formed later.
There has been nomenclatural confusion over unarmed plants of Rubus ulmifolius (see E. Monasterio-Huelin and H. E. Weber 1996). Rubus inermis Willdenow is an illegitimate later homonym of R. inermis Pourret, and the type specimens for both names are of poor-quality. If an unarmed variety of R. ulmifolius is to be recognized, such as occurs in California, the name var. anoplothyrsus Sudre should be used instead of var. inermis (Willdenow) Focke.
Rubus ulmifolius is attractive and is potentially weedy but relatively uncommon, found primarily in coastal California from the San Francisco Bay region southward. It probably no longer persists in New Jersey, last collected there in 1897, and it is rare in Nevada and Oregon. Rubus ulmifolius likely hybridizes with R. bifrons where they co-occur; it is one of relatively few diploid and sexually reproducing species of European blackberries.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Rubus repens is recognized by its creeping, unarmed stems, simple, ovate-orbiculate leaves, long petioles with spreading hairs, sterile petaliferous flowers on long pedicels and fertile apetalous flowers on short pedicels, and essentially dry fruits. Phylogenetic analysis of DNA sequence data supports inclusion of D. repens in Rubus (L. A. Alice and C. S. Campbell 1999), among other basal species to R. lasiococcus (K. V. Ambrose 2006).
The Iroquois use a decoction of powdered plants of Rubus repens as a blood purifier and for venereal disease (J. W. Herrick 1977).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
- Local floras:
CA, 
OR, 
WA - Local Web sites: CalFlora, CalPhotos,
Flora NW, 
PNW Herbaria 
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist (observations)
USDA Plants Database- LBJ Wildflower Center
- SEINet
- Plants of the World Online
- Encyclopedia of Life
- Wikipedia
- Google Image Search
MD Biodiversity
MI Flora
MN Wildflowers
