How to Identify Wild Blackberries

Leaves

• Wild blackberries have toothed, palmate-compound leaves, meaning that the edges of each leaf are jagged (toothed), the leaves are compound, meaning many, and palmate, having the shape of a human hand (palm). Each compound leaf contains between three and seven leaflets.

Flowers

• Blackberries flower in the spring, and just like their leaves, they have a five-petal, white flower in the shape of a pentacle. Each flower contains both male stamens on the outside of the central mass and female pistils on the center mass.

Fruit

• Blackberries resemble raspberries in that they are a cluster of very small, round berries. When blackberries are unripe, they are red; when they are black, they're ready to pick. Unlike raspberries, blackberries are not hollow and do not leave a cellulose receptacle behind when picked.

Branches

• Wild blackberry branches, depending on the specific species, may be thorny, thornless, trailing (like a vine) or may stand tall.

Geographic Origins

• Wild blackberries are native to Europe, North America, Asia and South America. Europeans have used blackberries for 2000 years, in medicines, as hedges to protect property and as a food source.

North American Species

• Rubus allegheniensis, Rubus argutus, Rubus cuneifolius and Rubus canadensis are dominant species in northern North America, where Rubus trivialis is specific to the southeast and Rubus ursinus is specific to the Pacific Northwest.