Rubus niveus
| Rubus niveus | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 9 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 8' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Mid Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Rubus niveus (common name: ceylon raspberry)
Propagation: Seed - requires stratification and is best sown in early autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires one month stratification at about 3°c and is best sown as early as possible in the year. Prick out the seedlings when they are large enough to handle and grow on in a cold frame. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring of the following year.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[1].
Tip layering in July. Plant out in autumn.
Division in early spring or just before leaf-fall in the autumn[1].
Cultivation: Easily grown in a good well-drained loamy soil in sun or semi-shade[2][3][1].
Not very hardy outdoors in Britain, but selected provenances should succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of the country[1].
Occasionally cultivated for its edible fruit in Asia, there is at least one named variety. 'Mysore' is a form suitable for sub-tropical areas, it has mild but nice flavoured fruit with small seeds[4].
Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus[1].
Range: E. Asia - Himalayas from Afghanistan to China, south to Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Thailand.
Habitat: Forests and forest clearings, 1700 - 2300 metres in Kashmir[5][6]. Thickets on slopes, sparse forests, montane valleys, streamsides and flood plains at elevations of 500 - 2800 metres[7].
Edibility: Fruit - raw or cooked in pies, preserves etc[5][8][4]. The small fruit is up to 12mm in diameter[7], it is juicy with a sweet rich black-raspberry flavour[6][4]. Of excellent desert quality, the fruit is very soft and needs to be consumed within 24 hours of being picked otherwise it will start to decay[9]. Average annual yields from a bush covering 2.5m² in the Himalayas are 657g[9]. The fruit contains about 7.8% sugars, 0.13% protein, 0.77% ash[9].
Usage: A purple to dull blue dye is obtained from the fruit[10].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: R. lasiocarpus. Smith.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Singh, Gurcharan and Premnath Kachroo. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, 1976.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Gamble, James. A Manual of Indian Timbers. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, 1972.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Flora of China. 1994.
- ↑ Gupta, Basant. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press, 1945.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Parmar, Chiranjit. Wild Fruits of the Sub-Himalayan Region. Kalyani Publishers, 1982.
- ↑ Grae, Ida. Nature's Colors. MacMillan Publishing, 1974.