Blackberry

Description:

The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by Rubus fruticosus, or any of several hybrids between that species and others of the Rubus genus in the Rosaceae family. Blackberries are perennial plants which typically bear biennial stems ("canes") from the perennial root system. Anthocyanins are antioxidants found in blackberries that are responsible for giving blackberries their rich and dark colour. This concentrated pigment of blackberries is acknowledged with decreasing the rate at which the memory deteriorates.

Habitat:

Blackberries grow in the cool months of spring, not the hot months of summer. Additionally, they require full sun; this means that they must get at least 6 hours of direct sunlight every day. Since they grow on canes, it is important to remove any dried ones, or canes that have already grown fruit. This ensures that healthy canes are available for growing season.

Notes:

Blackberry production in Mexico has expanded enormously in the past decade. While once based on the cultivar 'Brazos', an old erect blackberry cultivar developed in Texas in 1959, the Mexican industry is now dominated by the Brazilian 'Tupi' released in the 1990s. 'Tupi' has the erect blackberry 'Comanche' and a "wild Uruguayan blackberry" as parents. Since there are no native blackberries in Uruguay, the suspicion is that the widely grown 'Boysenberry' is the male parent. In order to produce these blackberries in regions of Mexico where there is no winter chilling to stimulate flower bud development, chemical defoliation and application of growth regulators are used to bring the plants into bloom.