Rubus idaeus

Rubus idaeus

Wild Raspberries are not especially common in my mountains, but when they are found, they are one of the best and tastiest treats the mountains have to offer. How can you not enjoy a search though clump of prickly bushes when the reward is as sweet as this?

These are the same species as cultivated raspberries. Some of the cultivated varieties are bigger, but the taste is the same. The plant is somewhat similar to wild rose in appearance, but it has lots of smaller prickles, instead of scattered thorns, and of course, the berries should be familiar to everyone.

Raspberries seem to like a lot of water, but not a lot of competition. Since wet areas tend to have a lot of competition, this may explain why they are hard to find. I have found them, for example, on steep stream banks, and at the edges of rock slides down moist slopes.

The Latin name Rubus is similar to another group of berries named Ribes. So if you learn the Latin names, just try to remember that Rubus is the genus of raspberries, blackberries, and thimbleberries; while Ribes is the genus of gooseberries and currents.