Historically thought to have been brought into be cultivated for their fruit, they have taken to the South African climate and grow prodigiously.  Spread by birds that eat the fruit and deposit the seed away from the mother plant very difficult to eradicate.

 

Latin name:                 Rubus fruticosus

Common name:           Brambles, Blackberry, Blaberies

Location:                     KwaZulu Natal, Gauteng, Magaliesberg, Mpumalanga and Eastern Cape

Description:                 Leaves variable green grey or white under sides three, five or seven foliate.

Flowers:                       White or pink – September to January

Fruit:                           Red turning black, fleshy glomerules usually juicy

Edible:                         Delicious, but a few to many pips.

Irritant:                        Stems and leaves are all covered in small thorns.

Invades:                       Forest margins, plantations, savanna, roadsides, watercourses, urban open spaces.