''Rubus allegheniensis'' is a North American species of
glandular highbush blackberry in section Alleghenienses of the genus
''Rubus'', a member of the
rose family
Rosaceae (), the rose family, is a medium-sized family of flowering plants that includes 4,828 known species in 91 genera.
The name is derived from the type genus ''Rosa''. Among the most species-rich genera are '' Alchemilla'' (270), ''Sorbus ...
. It is the most common and widespread highbush blackberry in eastern and central
North America. It is commonly known as Allegheny blackberry.
Description
The characteristics of ''Rubus allegheniensis'' can be highly variable.
It is an erect bramble, typically but occasionally rarely over high, with single shrubs approaching 2.4 m or more in breadth, although it usually forms dense thickets of many plants. The
leaves are
alternate
Alternative or alternate may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Alternative (''Kamen Rider''), a character in the Japanese TV series ''Kamen Rider Ryuki''
* ''The Alternative'' (film), a 1978 Australian television film
* ''The Alternative ...
,
compound
Compound may refer to:
Architecture and built environments
* Compound (enclosure), a cluster of buildings having a shared purpose, usually inside a fence or wall
** Compound (fortification), a version of the above fortified with defensive struc ...
,
ovoid, and have toothed edges.
Canes have many prickles, with white, 5-petal, flowers in late spring and glossy, deep-violet to black,
aggregate fruit A raspberry fruit (shown with a raspberry beetle larva) is an aggregate fruit, an aggregate of drupe">raspberry_beetle.html" ;"title="raspberry fruit (shown with a raspberry beetle">raspberry fruit (shown with a raspberry beetle larva) is an aggre ...
in late summer.
It is
shade intolerant.
[Peterson, Chris J., and Steward T.A. Pickett. "Forest reorganization: a case study in an old-growth forest catastrophic blowdown." ''Ecology.'' 76 (1995): 763+. Retrieved 14 Oct. 2012.]
Distribution and habitat
''R. allegheniensis'' is very common in eastern and central
North America. It is also naturalized in a few locations in
California
California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
and
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
.
The presence of the species influences the dynamics of the
understory
In forestry and ecology, understory (American English), or understorey (Commonwealth English), also known as underbrush or undergrowth, includes plant life growing beneath the forest canopy without penetrating it to any great extent, but abo ...
vegetation of many forests in the eastern United States. An abundance of ''R. allegheniensis'' encourages new tree seedlings. Where the effects of herbivorous animals (such as
deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
) reduce the abundance of Allegheny blackberry, a competitor, ''
Dennstaedtia punctilobula
''Dennstaedtia punctilobula'', the eastern hayscented fern or hay-scented fern, is a species of fern native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland west to Wisconsin and Arkansas, and south in the Appalachian Mountains to northern Alabama; it ...
'' (hay-scented fern), takes over. Where ''D. punctilobula'' becomes common, the growth of tree seedlings is restricted.
["Wildlife Management." ''The Princeton Guide to Ecology''. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2009. Retrieved 14 October 2012.]
Concentrations of ''R. allegheniensis'' increase greatly after events that destroy taller shrubs and trees and thus permit more light into the understory, such as fires or widespread
blowdown.
["Vegetation of Hooper Branch Nature Preserve, Iroquois County, Illinois." ''Northeastern Naturalist.'' 17 (2): pp 261-272. 2010] These populations often decline in later years as the tree seedlings sheltered by the blackberry canes grow and reduce the amount of light reaching the lower levels.
Uses
The berries are edible and nutritious. People eat them raw and cook them into various treats, including pies, cobblers, muffins, jellies, and jams.
[
]
Ecology
Many mammals eat the fruit, including elk, foxes, bears, rabbits, raccoons, opossums, squirrels, mice, and chipmunks, and deer will browse the young canes. Blackberries are also an important food source for many species of birds. The mammals and birds that eat the fruit then disperse the seed in their droppings, enabling the plant to spread to new locations. A wide variety of native bees, butterflies, beetles, flies, ants, wasps, and other insects are attracted to the nectar and pollen of the flowers, and caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles eat the leaves. Birds and small mammals use the thickets formed by the canes for shelter.[
]
References
External links
United States Department of Agriculture plants profile for ''Rubus allegheniensis''
photo of herbarium specimen at Missouri Botanical Garden, collected in Missouri in 1992
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{{Taxonbar, from=Q276439
allegheniensis
Berries
Flora of North America
Plants described in 1890