Rubus rosifolius

Rose-leaf Bramble
Rubus rosifolius
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Rosales
Family:	Rosaceae
Genus:	Rubus
Species:	R. rosifolius
Binomial name
Rubus rosifolius Sm.

Rubus rosifolius, (syn. Rubus rosaefolius) also known as roseleaf bramble, West Indian raspberry, thimbleberry and ola'a is a prickly subshrub native to rainforest and tall open forest of the Himalayas, East Asia, and eastern Australia.^[1] It is also found abundantly in the Brazilian states Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and to the south until Rio Grande do Sul.^[2] The plant can also be found in a lot of San Francisco neighborhoods.

Rose-leaf bramble leaves are compound with toothed margins, with glandular-hairs on both sides of leaflets. Flowers are white in panicles or solitary.^[3] Edible fruit are 2 cm long.

Leaves stay green and fruits ripen in early autumn in Eastern Australia.

Uses

Although R.rosifolius is rarely cultivated, the plant has several uses. The fruit is sweet and pleasant flavoured when grown with good soil moisture. The fruit is also sold at markets in the Himalayas.^[4]

The leaf is used as a medicinal herbal tea for treating diarrhoea, menstrual pains, morning sickness and labour pains.^[5] The leaf contains essential oils.^[6]

Weed risk

R. rosifolius is an introduced environmental weed in the Hawaiian Islands, Puerto Rico and French Polynesia, and extreme caution should be adopted when considering introducing this plant into regions where it is not already native.^[7][8]

References

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