Rubus salisburgensis

Rubus salisburgensis is a European bramble of the Rosaceae, one of the many microspecies belonging to the blackberry aggregate (Rubus fruticosus agg.). Like other brambles it is a scrambling, biennial-caned shrub with arching, prickly stems that root at the tips, and palmately compound leaves with toothed, often whitish-felted leaflets. In summer it bears clusters of five-petalled white to pale pink flowers, followed by aggregate fruits (blackberries) that ripen from red to glossy black. The aggregate is notoriously variable, with countless apomictic microspecies such as this one distinguished by subtle differences in leaf shape, prickle form, hairiness and flower colour. It grows in hedgerows, woodland margins, scrub and waste ground. The edible berries are gathered, and the astringent leaves are used like those of common blackberry.