Raspberry vs Blackberry – Identification

Q: Please help me settle a disagreement with my hubby. I say that the berries growing on thorny bushes along roadsides are called blackberries. My husband says that these are black raspberries. Is there a difference between the two?

A: I want to keep this marriage together! So the answer is….you both could be right. There are indeed black raspberries and, of course, blackberries.

Here’s how to tell the difference: when you pick a raspberry it will leave behind a small “cone” of orange tissue. This is why raspberry fruit is somewhat hollow. Blackberries, on the other hand, come off cleanly, with no cone.

Here’s more information to savor: black raspberries are not at all common in the South. Be gracious when the roadside fruit most likely turns out to be blackberries.

raspberry

blackberry

Walter Reeves

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