Illini Hardy Blackberry vs Falsebox - TreeTime.ca

Illini Hardy Blackberry vs Falsebox

Rubus fruticosus Illini Hardy

Paxistima myrsinites

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CUSTOM GROW

Illini Hardy Blackberry
Falsebox

The Illini Hardy Blackberry was developed in Illinois for northern growers, and produces a large, juicy blackberry with medium-sweet flavor. The berries are ready for harvest in midsummer, and go great in preserves.

The Illini Hardy Blackberry, or the Illinois 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.

Falsebox is a hardy, native evergreen shrub found in forests, rocky slopes, and open woodland sites. Though small and easily overlooked among the leaves, the maroon flowers still supply nectar and pollen for pollinators such as native bees and flies. Blooming in spring, they provide an important early-season food source. Its year-round greenery adds visual interest through the winter.

Falsebox is a low-growing shrub that tolerates a wide range of conditions, including drought once established. It thrives particularly well beneath the shade of mature trees, where few other plants succeed. With its resilience and ecological value, Falsebox is well-suited for naturalization, restoration projects, and diverse landscape plantings.

Illini Hardy Blackberry Quick Facts

Falsebox Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 5a
Height: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Height: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: dry, normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: slow
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: prostrate to spreading
Spreading: layering - medium
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium


Foliage: evergreen, leathery leaves
Bark: reddish-brown
Flowers: small, maroon-purple, fragrant
Bloom time: summer
Berries: black
Flavor: medium
Harvest: July
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC
Other Names: illinois blackberry
Other Names: false box, mountain boxwood, mountain lover, myrtle boxwood, oregon boxleaf, oregon boxwood