Got up early to pick berries before work and to avoid the heat. There's a spot that I know that was logged a while ago, and then was bought by a conservation group. They put down a bunch of wood chips (and planted doug firs, ugh) and sowed a bunch of yarrow, asters, lupine, and other native species that appreciate full sun. They didn't plant trailing blackberry (Rubus ursinus), but it loves those conditions so it came anyway. Blackcap raspberry (Rubus leucodermis) also showed up, though it's not as incredibly vigorous as the blackberry.
Eventually the Douglas firs will grow in and shade everything that needs sun out, but for know it's full of sun loving species and I'm enjoying it. While I'm up there, I'm pulling out invasive species like Himalayan blackberry, scotts broom, and tansy. Since we're entering the dry season, they'll dry out and die before they can reroot. Plus, their nutrients get returned to the soil, which will inturn feed the rest of the plants.
It's also a great opportunity to show trailing blackberry and blackcap raspberry side by side!
Left is blackberry, right is raspberry:
Berries, ripe and unripe
A single leaf of each
Showing their vines, with that characteristic whitish bloom. Also shows how much larger the raspberry thorns are.
And their fruit, side by side! The blackberry is very black, glossy, and keeps it's core, while the raspberry is a reddish black, not shiny, and doesn't keep its core.
