Bunchberry vs Flowering Raspberry - TreeTime.ca

Bunchberry vs Flowering Raspberry

Rubus odoratus

Cornus canadensis

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Flowering Raspberry
Bunchberry

The Flowering Raspberry is an ornamental shrubby plant that blooms with fragrant light purple flowers throughout the summer and has a large, decorative foliage of bright green leaves. The flowers resemble that of a wildrose, and the foliage turns a bright yellow in the fall. This cultivar produces small red raspberries, similar to that of a thimbleberry, but the fruit is mostly tasteless.

The Flowering Raspberry, also known as Virginia Raspberry or Purple-Flowered Raspberry, makes a great hedge plant and is a good choice for attracting birds to your yard.

The Bunchberry, or Quatre-Temps as it is commonly known in Quebec, is an excellent ornamental plant to have in your garden. With star-shaped white flowers in spring and clusters of bright red berries in the fall, this is one of the most refined and hardy groundcovers available. The foliage has ornamental value, with leaves going from a deep green in the spring and summer to a beautiful brick-red in the fall.

Bunchberry is a spreading evergreen perennial with a ground-hugging habit of growth. This plant is not well suited for urban areas close to streetsides, as it is quite intolerant to pollution. It is Canada’s national flower.

According to a poll done by the Master Gardeners of Ontario, it is one of the most recognizable Canadian flowers.

Its flowers grow with elastic petals and "fire" its pollen with the force of 2000-3000 times the force of gravity.

Flowering Raspberry Quick Facts

Bunchberry Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 1b
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Height: 0.2 m (0.6 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Spread: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Light: any
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: short
Suckering: high
Suckering: medium


Fall colour: brick red
Bark: thornless orange
Flowers: purple
Flowers: white
Berries: red to purple, seedy
Berries: small, red
Firmness: firm
Flavor: tasteless
Flavor: sweet
Harvest: August/September
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON, QC, NS
Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: purple-flowered raspberry, virginia raspberry