woodland shrub

Black raspberry

Rubus occidentalis

Native to much of the USA and southern Canada

Southern Maine to North Dakota and north-central Colorado, south to Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Kansas

Light Full sun to shade Sun tolerance
Moisture Dry to moist Moisture preference
Zones 3–8 Cold to heat range
Bloom May–Jun Flowering time
Height up to 8 ft to 2.4 m
Life cycle Perennial Annual to perennial

In the garden

A woodland shrub for sun through shade and dry to moist soil. At up to 8 ft, it needs room in shade gardens and woodland edges. It shrugs off drought once established. Hardy in USDA zones 3–8.

Growing conditions

Light

Full sun Partial shade Full shade

Moisture

Dry Moist Wet

Hardiness zones

Find your zone:

Pollinators & wildlife

Bees Common Eastern Bumble Bee

also Western Honey Bee, Eastern Carpenter Bee, Brown-belted Bumble Bee +45 more
Two-spotted Bumble Bee, American Bumble Bee, Ligated Furrow Bee, Tricolored Bumble Bee, Black-tailed Bumble Bee, Pure Green Sweat bee, Red-belted Bumble Bee, Perplexing Bumble Bee, Fuzzy-Horned Bumble Bee, Two-form Bumble Bee, Half-black Bumble Bee, Orange-legged Furrow Bee, Yellow-fronted Bumble Bee, Lemon Cuckoo Bumble Bee, Northern Amber Bumble Bee, Golden Sweat Bee, Rusty-patched Bumble Bee, Modest Masked Bee, Yellowish Cuckoo Bumble bee, Hawthorn Mining Bee, broad-handed leafcutter bee, Horn-faced Mason Bee, Carlin's Mining Bee, Rufous-backed Cellophane Bee, Taurus Mason Bee, Bufflehead Mason Bee, Cresson's Mining Bee, Barbara's Mining Bee, Allegheny Mining Bee, Megachile brevis, Nomada superba, Osmia pumila, Lasioglossum cinctipes, Sphecodes aroniae, Nomada affabilis, Yellow-legged Mining Bee, Milwaukee Mining Bee, Great Banded Furrow Bee, Early Bumble Bee, Dilated-horned Small-Mason, Melissodes dentiventris, Pseudopanurgus parvus, Pseudopanurgus passiflorae, Hoplitis pilosifrons, Tetragona dissecta
Butterflies Red Admiral

also Silver-spotted Skipper, Spicebush Swallowtail, Canadian Tiger Swallowtail +14 more
Hobomok Skipper, Common Sootywing, Limenitis archippus archippus, Common Geranium-bronze, Cyaniris neglecta, Holly Blue, Papilio cresphontes, Euptychia cymela, Incisalia niphon, West Virginia White, Juvenal's Duskywing, Silvery Checkerspot, Polites coras, Mastor vialis
Flower flies Margined Calligrapher

also Common Drone Fly, Transverse-banded Flower Fly, Narrow-headed Marsh Fly +9 more
Thick-legged Hover Fly, Oblique-banded Pond Fly, Bare-eyed Bee-mimic Fly, American Snout Fly, Striped Bromeliad Fly, Bare-bellied Falsehorn, Confusing Wood Fly, Clear-winged Haireye, Temnostoma excentrica
Also visited by
- Wasps:
  
  Bald-faced Hornet, Eastern Yellowjacket +7 more
  Fraternal Potter Wasp, Common Aerial Yellowjacket, Euodynerus foraminatus, Coarse-backed Red Paper Wasp, Parasitic Aerial Yellowjacket, Tapered Mason Wasp, Polistes exclamans
- Beetles:
  
  Spotted Pink Lady Beetle, Cantharis livida +3 more
  Mournful Long-horned Beetle, Double-lined Longhorn Beetle, Evodinus monticola
- Moths:
  
  Eight-spotted Forester Moth, White-striped Black +1 more
  Maple Clearwing Moth
- Birds: American Goldfinch
- Hummingbirds: Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Butterflies that use this plant

Documented host and nectar records. Each links to a planting guide for that butterfly.

Full plant details

Where it grows

Habitat: WoodlandThe wild plant community it grows in.
Native range: Much of the USA and southern CanadaUnited States (36): AL, AR, CO, CT, DC, DE, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV. Canada (4): NB, ON, PE, QC. Where it grows wild on its own, by state and province.
Native distribution: Southern Maine to North Dakota and north-central Colorado, south to Georgia, Louisiana, Oklahoma and KansasThe same native range, usually more exact than the state list, and often noting where it has spread beyond it.

Growing conditions

Light: Full sun to shadeHow much sun it takes, from full sun to full shade.
Moisture: Dry to moistThe soil dampness it prefers, from dry to wet.
Hardiness zones: USDA 3–8 · Canadian 4–7The cold-to-heat climate range it survives.
Soil: Gravelly or sandy loamsThe soils it grows in naturally.
Soil texture: Light to heavy (sandy to clay)The soil grade it prefers, from sand to clay.
Soil pH: 5.2–7.5The acidity to alkalinity it tolerates (7 is neutral).
Soil quality: MediumHow rich a soil it needs. Many natives prefer lean soil and flop in rich beds.
Water use: MediumHow thirsty it is, a rough guide to how often to water.
Drought tolerance: HighRelative to plants of the same type and region, inferred from where it grows, not a days-without-water figure.
Salinity tolerance: NoneHow well it copes with salty soil, near roads or the coast.
Lime (CaCO₃) tolerance: HighHow well it copes with chalky, lime-rich soil.

Growth & form

Height: up to 8 ft (to 2.4 m)Typical mature height.
Life cycle: PerennialWhether it lives a single season (annual), two (biennial), or returns for years (perennial).
Growth rate: RapidA relative ranking versus other plants of the same type (USDA), not an absolute rate.
Shape: ErectIts overall silhouette.
Root depth: 12+ in (30+ cm)How far the roots reach, a guide to drought resilience and transplanting.

Flowers, foliage & fruit

Type: ShrubWhat kind of plant it is.
Bloom: May–JunWhen it flowers.
Flower color: WhiteThe bloom color, or colors.
Toxicity: None knownWhether any part is poisonous to people or pets.

Propagation & seed

Cold stratification: Required (cold, moist)Whether seed needs a cold, moist spell before it will germinate.
Propagation: Bare root, container, seed, sprigsHow to start new plants.
Seed: ~0.3 million seeds per poundNotes on the seed and how to sow it.
Seed spread rate: SlowHow readily it self-sows. Slow or none means well-behaved, not a spreader.
Seedling vigor: MediumHow strongly young seedlings establish.
Vegetative spread: RapidWhether it creeps outward or stays put in a clump.