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Fruit EdibleShrubs

Rubus boysenberry, thornless (F)

thornless boysenberry

The thornless boysenberry is a vigorous hybrid berry with thornless canes spreading up to 2m wide. Small white flowers are borne in spring and the purple-black fruits, tasting like sweet blackberries, ripen in late summer

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Size
Ultimate height
1.5–2.5 metres
Time to ultimate height
2–5 years
Ultimate spread
1.5–2.5 metres
Growing conditions
Clay
Loam
Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained, Well–drained
pH
Neutral
Colour & scent
StemFlowerFoliageFruit
Spring White Green
Summer Green Black Purple
Autumn Green
Winter
Position
  • Full sun
Aspect

South–facing or North–facing or West–facing or East–facing

Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness
H6
Botanical details
Family
Rosaceae
Native to GB / Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Trailing
Genus

Rubus can be deciduous or evergreen shrubs, often scrambling with bristly or prickly stems bearing simple, lobed, palmate or pinnate leaves and 5-petalled flowers followed by juicy, sometimes edible fruits

Name status

Unresolved

How to grow

Cultivation

Usually fan-trained on free-standing post and wire support systems or can be grown vertically over an arch. Mulch with well-rotted compost or manure

Propagation

Propagate by tip layering or from cuttings

Suggested planting locations and garden types
  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Banks and slopes
  • Hedging and screens
Pruning

Cut out old canes following fruiting and leave new canes tied together with soft string over winter. Untie and train along the support system in the spring. See pruning hybrid berries for more detail

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, raspberry beetle and gall mites

Diseases

May be susceptible to grey moulds and honey fungus (rarely)

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