Balsors Blackberry vs Flowering Raspberry - TreeTime.ca

Balsors Blackberry vs Flowering Raspberry

Rubus fruticosus Balsors

Rubus odoratus

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Balsors Blackberry
Flowering Raspberry

The Balsors Blackberry is a cold-hardy variety that produces very large, sweet and juicy blackberries late in the summer. They are great for baking and fresh eating.

Balsors Blackberry are floricanes, primarily fruiting on second year canes. Each spring cut back all two-year old canes, leaving only the last year’s growth. This is a self-pollinating variety, so it doesn’t require a second plant nearby to set fruit.

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.

Balsors Blackberry Quick Facts

Flowering Raspberry Quick Facts

Zone: 4a
Zone: 3a
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Suckering: low
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium
Maintenance: high


Bark: has thorns
Bark: thornless orange
Flowers: purple
Berries: black
Berries: red to purple, seedy
Fruit size: large
Firmness: soft
Firmness: firm
Flavor: sweet
Flavor: tasteless
Harvest: August
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON, QC, NS
Other Names: balsors hardy blackberry, illinois blackberry
Other Names: purple-flowered raspberry, virginia raspberry