Mission Statement: To promote the appreciation and conservation of Washington's native plants and their habitats through study, education, and advocacy.
Brambling on the Olympic Peninsula
Twentieth century philosopher Ronald Jager says "Picking wild berries is the sweetest and best of our vagrant summer pleasures." For those who agree, we have ample opportunity to engage in such distraction during our rambles in the lowlands of the Olympic Peninsula.
This can be practiced as trailside foraging without breaking stride or we can launch a full-scale assault with bucket, brush-beater, and armor. Part One commemorates the art, dangers, and rewards of blackberry foraging in the lowlands of the Olympic Peninsula.
Part One, the Blackberries
Our target species are the wild berries belonging to the genus Rubus, of the rose family (Rosaceae), commonly referred to as blackberries or raspberries or in England the more fanciful term brambles. Six such species are nearly always encountered on any substantial low elevation hike in the Wilderness Within (i.e., those Wildlands near enough to a population center that they can be reached by a bicycle ride, a walk, a public bus ride, or sometimes by canoe or kayak).
For example, my wife Ann and I recorded all six species on nearly every leg of our walk on the Olympic Discovery Trail from Port Townsend to La Push, whether it was the Larry Scott Trail, the trail from the Morse Creek to Port Angeles, or rambling from Port Angeles to the Dungeness River.
Three of the six bramble species are blackberries, where the core of the berry is removed when the berry is picked. Three are raspberries where the core of the berry remains attached to the stem. Four of the species are native to our area and two are non-native noxious weeds. One produces canes like a raspberry, one is a ground-hugging, trailing vine, two are shrubs.
The two non-natives can grow as huge inch-thick sprawling canes that overtop and overrun trees, shrubs, and buildings in their paths. They are the Kudzu of the northwest, but with lethal spines.
Technically the brambles bear "prickles" because the sharp protrusions on their stems are formed by a hardened epidermal protrusion. Spines are formed by modified leaves, and thorns are formed by modified stems.
However, the second edition of the Flora of the Pacific Northwest suggests that the term spines is an acceptable colloquial term for particularly stiff and sharp prickles. In this article I will use the term spine or prickle depending on which seems appropriate for the structure being referenced. [Editor's note: For more on this topic see the blog post Spines, Prickles, and Thorns]
Pacific Blackberry (Rubus ursinus)
Eat dessert first! So, I begin with Pacific blackberry (also known as Pacific dewberry, Pacific blackberry, Douglas berry, trailing blackberry, ankle-catcher, vegetable barbed-wire, or blood sweat and tears).
Pacific blackberry is our only common lowland native blackberry and represents the sine qua non of northwest edible berries. The fruit has a combination of superior characters that make it the most desirable objective for human consumption.
This species is found everywhere: in our backyards, along and/or across the trails of shady forests as well as in sunny clearcuts or other forest openings. The vines stay low to the ground except when scrambling (or brambling?) over other shrubs, downed logs, and stumps. Their taste is superb in any circumstance (i.e., straight from the vine, in brickle, as jam, in pies, in torts or as topping for ice cream, French toast, or pancakes). Berries are ripe from late June through July.
Rubus ursinus is recognized by its scrambling habit, its compound leaves with three (sometimes five) toothed evergreen leaflets, and its short sharp spines all along the stem. The spines are hooked and while relatively short, they are sharp.
Dense patches can be fairly easily traversed, although overzealous bushwhacking will cause considerable scratching deep enough to draw blood. The lax stems are sometimes whitish which makes it appear a bit like the blackcap. The trailing vines grow across trails at levels perfect for tripping nonchalant hikers, thus the common name ankle-catcher.
Although the flowers all appear superficially similar, the plants produce separate male and female flowers. Careful observation will reveal that the male flowers are larger than the female, fruit-producing flowers. Foraging for berries among the male brambles is fruitless!
Also, minimal fruit will be produced in dense shade, either because of missing pollinators, missing sunshine, or missing flowers. So, finding a large population of plants in the early spring, even if they are flowering, does not guarantee a large harvest of berries in July. I call them blood, sweat and tears because, due to the relatively small berries that is what it what it takes to pick a gallon.
Other desirable characteristics of the Pacific blackberry include its relative firmness, so it will not be crushed at the bottom of your filled picking container. Because of the difficulty in finding densely fruiting patches, some folks tend to pick as many as possible when possible and then hoard the stash in the freezer just in case the next year's crop is impoverished. Thus, we have berries from 2014 in our freezer.
The bottom line: When one finds a productive patch of the Pacific blackberry, one keeps the location to oneself. That is to say, locations of highly productive picking areas are closely guarded secrets, comparable to the secret sites for chanterelles.
Himalayan Blackberry (Rubus bifrons aka R. armeniacus) and Evergreen Blackberry (Rubus laciniatus)
Abundant berry production by Himalayan and evergreen blackberries partially atones for their inherent viciousness and tendency to appropriate all vacant real estate.
Both have been introduced to the U.S. for commercial berry production (and perhaps by the early day monks for making wine) and both are now listed as noxious weeds in the state of Washington.
Himalayan blackberry is recognized by its compound leaves with five toothed leaflets, inch thick canes up to 30 feet long, and its vicious spines. The leaves are semi-deciduous, often turning bright yellow or red in early winter and mostly shed by spring. Evergreen blackberry (aka cut-leaf blackberry) has five deeply incised leaflets which are mostly evergreen.
Both species have inch-wide white or pinkish flowers in June and bear ripe fruit by late August. The corpulent be-spined stems are easily recognizable in all seasons. Evergreen spines are stiff, recurved and vicious; they can strike bushwhackers from up to a foot away, tear clothes, and induce bleeding. Himalayan spines are slightly less lethal, as they are not as recurved or hook-like. In dense stands, a mass of blackberries is essentially impenetrable without heavy equipment. These are the true hell-berries of the northwest.
The berries are large, tasty, seedy and prolific. They can be picked by the gallon, often in sufficient quantity for winemaking. Bring your machete and wear armor! Subtle differences in flavor exist between these two seedy characters. I prefer the Himalayan but others claim the Evergreen to be sweeter.
Some Northwesterners and neo-Northwesterners reject them entirely, due to their seediness and lack of succulence compared to the native blackberry described above. In light of their noxious status, I consider it my duty to consume as many as possible.
This article does not enter into the massive literature on recipes for using blackberries, although two notes are worth mentioning. The juice sans seeds makes a terrific tasting blackberry jelly; and if you prefer the consistency of jam, try using 1/4 whole berries and 3/4 juice. Seediness is reduced by 75% and texture is jam-like.
Berries ripen late July through September. Invasiveness, non-native status, and lethality of spines are liabilities. While both species are common plants at low elevation on the Olympic Peninsula, the Himalayan berry is by far the most common in dryer climes such as the rainshadow, and it is the usual target of late summer and fall berry picking.
Part Two, the Raspberries
In this second part of the Olympic Peninsula brambling experience we leave the blackberries behind and focus on the low elevation raspberries, all of which are Washington native species.
Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis)
Perhaps the best known of the raspberries is the Salmonberry. It is the earliest to flower and the earliest to provide trailside foraging opportunity. It is best known for its orange (not really salmon-colored) berries.
The plant is shrub-like rather than having canes like domestic raspberries. It is recognized by having compound leaves with five toothed leaflets. The more pointed leaflets, shrubby habit, and lack of lethal spines easily distinguish it from the blackberries described in part one.
The spines (actually more like a true prickle) are small, not stiff, and lack the recurved tips of the blackberries. Salmonberry is very common, particularly in moist to wet swampy areas. Bushwhacking through a thicket of salmonberries is feasible with hat on and head down.
The pink (cerise)-colored flowers bloom as early as February with ripe berries arriving May through July. The astringent bark has been used for medicinal purposes to alleviate discomfort caused by over-indulgence in salmon.
Many find the light orange berries (they also come in red or purple shades) delectable, but I consider their bland taste to be inferior to the two raspberries described below. Worthy of an occasional nip along the trail, but mass harvest is best left to the birds and bears. In addition to sustenance for present-day intrepid hikers, salmonberries have been consumed over the ages by first peoples of the northwest.
Thimbleberry (Rubus parviflorus)
Thimbleberries have been described as deliciously tart by some, flavorless by others. A colleague of mine finds them to be one of the most delicious of northwest native berries.
To me, the bright red berries, while fine tasting, are too soft for mass harvesting. They turn to mush in the bottom of the collecting bucket.
Thimbleberry is unique among our lowland brambles in that the twigs and branches are unarmed. The maple-like leaves are soft and provide soft yellow color in the fall. The large flowers are white. It is very common along the margins of woods and trails, in open areas, and along shorelines.
The berries have been a favored food of all the northwest coast people both fresh and dried for storage. The large soft leaves can make useful basket liners and food wrappers. Some have referred to the leaves as nature's toilet paper.
It is helpful to remember that thimbleberry and salmonberry are the two common shrubby rather than vine-y or cane producing members of the bramble bunch. Both are common and widespread.
Blackcap or Black Raspberry (Rubus leucodermis)
Blackcaps are our native black raspberry. The berries are delicious. They can be found in the woods but bear more fruit when growing in open sunny locations. The spines are sharp, recurved, and mercifully short. Even so they have can cause considerable pain and discomfort.
The whitish blush on the stems (leuco-dermis=white-skinned) is characteristic. The plant forms canes like a raspberry rather than looking like a shrub or vine. The flowers are white and about ¾ inch across.
Blackcap, although rarely abundant, has the delicious taste of a sweet black raspberry. They are well worth the foraging effort. The berries make fine cobbler, syrup, and jam.
In summary, and reflecting only my opinion, palatability in priority order for all the brambles is: Pacific blackberry, blackcap, Himalayan blackberry, evergreen blackberry, thimbleberry, and salmonberry. Lethality of spines (worst first) is evergreen blackberry, Himalayan blackberry, blackcap, Pacific blackberry, salmonberry, and thimbleberry.
As Robert Frost wrote, "It's a nice way to live, just taking what nature is willing to give..."
Happy foraging.
Editor's note: For more about these species and many others, check out the WNPS Native Plant Directory.
