Consider-the-Lilies Web Gallery
Purple-flowering Raspberry
This is a most unusual Raspberry for unlike other members of the wild Rubus (Bramble) family, it is virtually without thorns.
And, of course, its pastel magenta flowers don't look at all like the common white blackberry and raspberry blossoms.
I found the naming interesting, because it doesn't look "purple" at all to me. Nineteenth-century naturalist Neltje Blanchan Doubleday noticed this, too: "Purple, as we of to-day understand the color, the flower is not; but rather the [Tyrian] purple of ancient Orientals. On cool, cloudy days the petals are a deep rose that fades into bluish pink when the sun is hot."
This wild shrub is also called Fragrant Thimbleberry, for the flat, conical berries it produces. However, because they are covered with fine hairs, the plant is not valued for its fruit. This is another lily that I'll enjoy visually, or not at all.
But edible or not, this native, thornless Bramble is more than worthy of our consideration, in my opinion. Throughout May and June in Virginia, the "purple" flowers cannot be missed as they seemingly glow in the shady nooks where this most unusual Raspberry flourishes.
Go to the Main Directory to consider more lilies of the field.