Rubus illecebrosus

The Rubus illecebrosus, is the well-known Strawberry Raspberry in Japan, where it is called Baraichigo and children enjoy its false strawberries on their way to school. It is a wild, low-lying and thorny bush, very similar to our raspberry Rubus idaeus, which readily suckers in cool, fertile and shaded soils. Its spring flowering of large white wild roses is beautiful, and its big fleshy fruits of a tempting red colour are edible although not very tasty. They are harvested in summer and can be eaten raw or made into jams enhanced with a squeeze of lemon. This charming and unique plant will delight birds, curious gardeners, and, of course, children. It makes a good ground cover at the edge of a woodland, in a garden that leaves room for nature.

The Strawberry Raspberry belongs to the Rosaceae family. It is a suckering plant with shallow roots originating from the Japanese undergrowth. This cold-resistant bush is more suited to our humid temperate climates. It prefers slightly acidic soils and dislikes excessive limestone.

With rapid growth, a plant will eventually form a bushy and ground-covering mass that can reach a maximum height of 50-60 cm (19.7 - 23.6 in) (more commonly 30-40 cm) with a spread of over 1 metre (3 inches 4 feets) at ground level. It spreads laterally through rhizomes, producing shoots like raspberry plants. The flowering takes place in spring, from April to June depending on the climate, on plants that are 2 years old or older. It consists of 5 cm (2 in) flowers in diameter with 5 white petals, honey-scented and nectar-rich.  The fruits ripen between August and September. They are large raspberries weighing about 10 grams, with a deep red colour, mildly flavoured, and slightly sweet and sour. It seems that cooking these raspberries develops interesting flavours. They can be enjoyed as they are or made into jams, jellies, sauces. The hollow, slightly drooping stems are covered in fine thorns. They bear lovely leaves with 5 elongated, pointed, and wavy lobes. The glossy lamina displays a beautiful light green-blue hue before turning yellow and pale red in autumn. The vegetation is often damaged by the cold. However, this does not harm the plant, which vigorously regrows from the base in spring.

Plant the Strawberry Raspberry preferably in partial shade, in deep soil without excessive limestone. Under these conditions, the bush will establish itself easily and in a few years will become an ornamental plant perfectly suited to its surroundings in a field of plants, as ground cover in a natural garden. It can also be showcased and planted in a large raised container where its slightly drooping habit will look marvellous. It will decorate a wild corner between trees, a large semi-shaded slope with carpets of periwinkles, Polygonum, creeping bugleweed. All of these are vigorous plants that are not very demanding. In a fruiting hedge, it can creep at the base of the May berry (Lonicera kamchatka), raspberry plants, raspberries, blueberries, garden blackberries, gooseberries, and other blackcurrant bushes.