Korean Raspberry (Rubus crataegifolius) — identification, habitat & look-alikes

Korean raspberry is an East Asian shrub that is not native to North America. Its white flowers are followed by glossy red raspberry-like fruits about 0.4 in (1 cm) wide.

Appearance

Growth form: This shrub is usually 3–7 ft (1–2 m) tall and may reach about 10 ft (3 m). The brownish stems carry slightly curved prickles.
Leaves: Each leaf is simple rather than divided into leaflets. It is usually 2–5 in (5–12 cm) long and has three to five palm-like lobes with toothed edges.
Flowers: The white, five-petaled flowers are about 0.4–0.6 in (1–1.5 cm) across.
Flowering time: At a botanical garden in the Chicago area, it blooms in May and June.
Fruit: The shiny yellow-to-dark-red is nearly round and about 0.4 in (1 cm) wide.

Look-alikes

red raspberryRubus idaeus

Red raspberry usually has leaves divided into three to five separate leaflets. Korean raspberry leaves are one piece with three to five lobes, so a clear leaf photo helps more than a fruit photo.

Why they get mixed upBoth shrubs have prickly stems and red raspberry-like fruits.

Where it lives

Typical habitats: sunny thickets
forest edges
roadsides
Range: It is native from southern Siberia through northern China and Korea to Japan.
Preferred conditions: It grows in sunny openings and forest margins and also tolerates partial shade in cultivation.
Flowering: Flowers May–Jun
Flowers May–Jun

Life cycle

Reproduction: Each flower produces many small seed-bearing fruits that together form the raspberry-like fruit.

Growing it

Care: It grows in full sun to partial shade in USDA hardiness zones 5–8.

Conservation

IUCN Red List: NENot EvaluatedNot yet assessed

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