Summary ⁷

Rubus argutus, known commonly as Sawtooth Blackberry or Florida Blackberry is a prickly bramble perennial native to southeastern North America. The flowers are white with large petals, borne in mid-spring.

Comments ⁸

Highbush Blackberry has a similar appearance to Rubus allegheniensis (Common Blackberry). Both of these species produce elongated racemes of flowers (or drupes) that have small and insignificant bracts. While the racemes of Highbush Blackberry have stalks with woolly non-glandular hairs, the racemes of Common Blackberry have stalks with sticky-glandular hairs. The drupes of Common Blackberry are usually longer (½-¾" ) than those of Highbush Blackberry, its leaflets are usually more broad in shape, and the petals of its flowers are slightly wider and tend to overlap. With the exception of the presence or absence of glandular hairs, these differences are more subtle than dramatic. Another common species, Rubus pensilvanicus (Leafy-Bracted Blackberry), produces its flowers (and drupes) in flat-headed corymbs that have large leafy bracts. As a result, its flowers and fruits are sometimes partially hidden by these bracts. In the Rubus genus, there has been excessive taxonomic splitting in the past. As a result, some older species of blackberry are now regarded as variants of current species of blackberry; Rubus ostryifolius and several others are considered scientific synonyms of Rubus argutus (Highbush Blackberry). Other common names of this species are Sawtooth Blackberry, Sharp-Toothed Blackberry, and Florida Prickly Blackberry.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Rosa Say, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), http://www.flickr.com/photos/rosasay/5378046433/
2. (c) "<a href=""http://www.knps.org"">Kentucky Native Plant Society</a>. Scanned by <a href=""http://www.omnitekinc.com/"">Omnitek Inc</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=ruar2_001_avd.tif
3. (c) "<a href=""http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/WLI/"">USDA NRCS Wetland Science Institute</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=ruar2_002_ahp.tif
4. (c) "<a href=""http://www.wli.nrcs.usda.gov"">NRCS National Wetland Team, Fort Worth, TX</a>.", some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=ruar2_004_avd.tif
5. (c) Forest & Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.biolib.cz/IMG/GAL/49880.jpg
6. (c) Forest & Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY), https://www.biolib.cz/IMG/GAL/49881.jpg
7. (c) Wikipedia, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubus_argutus
8. (c) John Hilty, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), http://eol.org/data_objects/29586499

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• eFloras.org
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HOSTS - a Database of the World's Lepidopteran Hostplants
• IPNI (with links to POWO, WFO, and BHL)
• Maryland Biodiversity Project
• SEINet Symbiota portals
• Tropicos
• World Flora Online

Range Map

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