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1 Leaves (all) simple; stems unarmed. |
..2 Leaves palmately lobed, orbicular, coarsely toothed, 9-30 cm long; plant a shrub, 10-20 dm tall; petals deep pink; [genus Rubacer or subgenus Anoplobatus – mapleleaf raspberries] |
..2 Leaves unlobed, elliptic to ovate-orbiculate, finely toothed, 1.5-3 cm long; plant an herb, < 1 dm tall; petals white; [genus Dalibarda or subgenus Dalibarda] |
1 Leaves 3-9-foliolate (reduced simple leaves may also be present in the inflorescence); stems generally armed with prickles (sparsely so in a few species). |
....3 Upright stems herbaceous, annual, not differentiated into primocanes and floricanes, unarmed or with a few weak bristles; stipules oblanceolate; [e. WV northward]; [subgenus Cylactis – dwarf raspberries] |
....3 Upright stems woody, biennial, differentiated into primocanes and floricanes, these usually well-armed with bristles and/or curved prickles; stipules linear; [collectively widespread]. |
......4 Fruit separating from the receptacle, the receptacle remaining on the pedicel; stems either strongly white-glaucous ( R. occidentalis), or densely beset with slender-based prickles and bristles ( R. idaeus), or densely hairy with 3-5 mm long glandular hairs ( R. phoenicolasius), or if not as above then the leaves pinnately 5-9-foliolate ( R. illecebrosus) or with a rhombic terminal leaflet about as wide as long and densely white-tomentose below ( R. parvifolius); [raspberries]. |
......4 Fruit retaining the receptacle; stems or leaves not as described above, except if beset with slender-based prickles and bristles then also < 1 m tall; [blackberries and dewberries]. |
........5 Canes very coarse, scrambling, often 2-5 m long, heavily armed; inflorescence cymose-paniculate; branches and pedicels of the floricanes armed with strong, flattened prickles (recurved cat’s-claw, or nearly straight in R. bifrons); [exotic, generally in disturbed habitats]; [Eurasian blackberries]. |
........5 Canes delicate to coarse, arching or trailing, 0-4 m long, unarmed to strongly armed; inflorescence racemiform; branches and pedicels of the floricanes generally unarmed; [native, though often in disturbed habitats]. |
..........6 Primocanes prostrate, creeping, or low-arching, rooting at the tip or also at the nodes; [dewberries]. |
..........6 Primocanes erect, ascending, or high-arching, not rooting; [native blackberries]. |
1 Stems creeping to trailing, 1-3 dm tall; petals 4-7 mm long, pink |
1 Stems arching to erect, 5-25 (-30) dm tall; petals either 5-15 (-18) mm long, white, or 4-6 mm long, white or pink ( R. phoenicolasius). |
..2 Floricane leaves pinnately (3-) 5-9-foliolate; aggregate fruit with 50-100 drupelets |
..2 Floricane leaves 1-3-foliolate; aggregate fruit with 10-60 drupelets. |
....3 Inflorescence paniculiform, many-flowered; berries sticky, purplish-red, lacking a glaucous bloom |
....3 Inflorescence corymbiform, few-flowered; berries not sticky, black or red (rarely purplish or yellow), with a glaucous bloom. |
......4 Fruit black (rarely yellow); pedicels with stout curved prickles; stems (at least the primocanes) strongly white-glaucous |
......4 Fruit red (rarely purple or yellow); pedicels with narrow straight bristles and sometimes also glandular hairs; stems green. |
........5 Leaves green, sparsely soft-hairy beneath; inflorescences with 1 (-3)-flowers |
........5 Leaves densely white-tomentose beneath; inflorescences with (1-) 3-7 (-20) flowers. |
..........6 Inflorescence without glandular hairs or gland-tipped bristles; [exotic, cultivated, sometimes escaped or persistent] |
..........6 Inflorescence with glandular hairs and gland-tipped bristles; [native, Mountains of NC and VA northwards] |
1 Stems strongly white-glaucous; fruits with 1-5 (-20) drupelets, glaucous |
1 Stems not glaucous (or with a slight 'bloom' when young); fruits with (5-) 10-50 drupelets, not glaucous. |
..2 Stems primarily armed with narrow-based prickles or even narrower bristles, with or without stout-based prickles as well. |
....3 Inflorescence racemiform; bristles of the stem nonglandular (very small glandular hairs may be present) |
....3 Inflorescence reduced, normally to a single flower per branch of the floricane; bristles of the stems absent to dense, gland-tipped |
..2 Stems armed with stout-based, usually recurved prickles (bristles lacking, though weak, stalked glands may be present); leaf undersurfaces nearly glabrous or softly pubescent; leaves deciduous. |
......4 Leaf undersurface thinly hairy, not soft to the touch (when fully developed). |
........5 Canes 4-7 mm in diameter, 4-12 dm tall |
........5 Canes up to 5 mm in diameter, 2-6 dm tall. |
..........6 Primocane leaves with prominent venation, leaflets typically plicate, flowers on pedicels < 4 cm long, the inflorescence compact |
..........6 Primocane leaves with inconspicuous venation, flowers on pedicels often exceeding 4 cm. |
............ 7 Primocane leaves with 3 leaflets; inflorescences with 1 (-3) flowers, 5-8 cm long |
............ 7 Primocane leaves with 3-5 leaflets; inflorescences with 1-12 flowers, 5-20 cm long. |
............ ..8 Canes 2-3 mm in diameter; prickles 1-2 mm long; primocane leaves mostly with 3 leaflets; inflorescences with 1-6 flowers |
............ ..8 Canes 3-5+ mm in diameter; prickles 2-4 mm long; primocane leaves mostly with 5 leaflets; inflorescences with 4-12 flowers. |
............ ....9 Primocanes with 1-3 prickles per cm of length; tips of central primocane leaflets gradually or relatively long-tapered to the tip |
............ ....9 Primocanes with 3-5 prickles per cm of length; tips of central primocane leaflets abruptly tapered to the tip |
......4 Leaf undersurface densely hairy, soft to the touch. |
............ ......10 Inflorescence axes with stalked glands (use 10× magnification). |
............ ........11 Primocane terminal leaflets elliptic, the base cuneate to rounded; inflorescences with 1-2 flowers |
............ ........11 Primocane terminal leaflets ovate to elliptic, the base cordate to subcordate; inflorescences often with > 2 flowers. |
............ ..........12 Primocanes with 3-5 prickles per cm of length, primocane terminal leaflets coarsely serrate, ≤ 7 cm long and 4.5 cm wide, ovate to elliptic |
............ ..........12 Primocanes with 1-3 prickles per cm of length, primocane terminal leaflets finely serrate, ≥ 7 cm long and 4.5 cm wide, mostly ovate |
............ ......10 Inflorescence axes lacking stalked glands. |
............ ............ 13 Canes 4-7 mm in diameter, 4-12 dm in height; inflorescences mostly racemose, with 4-8 flowers |
............ ............ 13 Canes mostly 2.5-5 mm in diameter, 2-6 dm in height; inflorescences not racemose, with flowers clustered near the tip, with 1-7 (-8) flowers. |
............ ............ ..14 Flowers on pedicels < 3.5 cm long, the inflorescence compact |
............ ............ ..14 Flowers on pedicels (at least some of them) > 3.5 cm long, some of the pedicels conspicuously ascending. |
............ ............ ....15 Primocane terminal leaflets with coarsely incised margins; inflorescences usually with just 1 flower; sepals often with an obviously spatulate tip 1-3 mm long |
............ ............ ....15 Primocane terminal leaflets regularly toothed; inflorescences usually with 2-8 flowers; sepals tapered to a sharply pointed tip. |
............ ............ ......16 Primocane terminal leaflets elliptic, rounded at the base |
............ ............ ......16 Primocane terminal leaflets ovate, cordate at the base |
1 Canes armed primarily with bristles or slender-based prickles. |
..2 Canes armed with slender-based prickles; leaves soft-pubescent beneath |
..2 Canes armed with bristles as well as slender-based prickles; leaves thinly pubescent to glabrous beneath |
1 Canes armed with heavy, stout-based, often recurved, prickles (or the canes essentially unarmed, the broad-based prickles few or almost absent). |
....3 Leaflets oblanceolate to obovate, definitely wider beyond the middle, generally obtuse or rounded at the tip; leaves densely white- or gray-tomentose beneath; [primarily of the Coastal Plain] |
....3 Leaflets lanceolate to ovate, widest below or near the middle, generally acute or acuminate at the tip; leaves glabrous to pubescent beneath, but the pubescence not notably tight and white or gray; [collectively widespread]. |
......4 Pubescence of the inflorescence rachis and pedicels predominantly gland-tipped, glandular hairs often present also on the young primocanes and the branches of the floricanes. |
........5 Inflorescences racemose, flaring widely towards the tip, or leafy and < 2× as long as wide; calyx lobes > 7 mm long, > 3 mm wide. |
..........6 Primocane leaves with central leaflets ovate to elliptic-oblong, usually about 2/3× as wide as long |
..........6 Primocane leaves with central leaflets ovate to elliptic-oblong, usually about 3/4× as wide as long (or wider) |
........5 Inflorescences narrowly racemose, usually appearing almost leafless (the bracts much smaller than the leaves, at least 2× as long as wide; sepals 5-7 (-8) mm long, 2.0-3.5 mm wide. |
............ 7 Primocane leaves with terminal leaflets 1-1.4× as long as wide |
............ 7 Primocane leaves with terminal leaflets < 1.6× as long as wide. |
............ ..8 Canes well-armed |
............ ..8 Canes unarmed or with a few, scattered short prickles |
......4 Pubescence of the inflorescence rachis and pedicels nonglandular. |
............ ....9 Primocane leaves with central leaflets ovate-elliptic to nearly orbicular; floricanes generally arching to low-arching, 5-13 (+) dm tall; inflorescences leafy-racemose. |
............ ......10 Leaflet undersurfaces velvety-hairy |
............ ......10 Leaflet undersurfaces glabrous to moderately soft-hairy. |
............ ........11 Leaves glabrous (or very nearly so) beneath; canes with at most few and weak prickles; leaflets of the primocanes with attenuate to caudate apices |
............ ........11 Leaves softly pubescent beneath; canes with many and strong prickles; leaflets of the primocanes with acute to acuminate apices |
............ ....9 Primocane leaves with central leaflets narrowly elliptic, elliptic, or obovate; floricanes generally erect to arching, 7-40 dm tall; inflorescences various. |
............ ..........12 Primocane leaves with central leaflets narrowly elliptic, > 2× as long as wide; inflorescences condensed at the ends of weak, leafy racemes or small, flaring clusters, the bracteal leaflets with jaggedly incised margins |
............ ..........12 Primocane leaves with central leaflets elliptic to obovate, < 2× as long as wide; inflorescences with substantial flower stalks and bracteal leaflets with regularly toothed margins. |
............ ............ 13 Primocane leaves with central leaflets generally widest above the midpoint; leaflet lower surfaces densely velvety, grayish-green; inflorescences with 5-11 flowers, often condensed at the ends of stout, well-armed racemes |
............ ............ 13 Primocane leaves with central leaflets generally widest at or below the midpoint; leaflets softly pubescent beneath, but not grayish-green; inflorescences with 5-16 (-20) flowers, typically racemose (rarely short and flaring). |
............ ............ ..14 Primocane leaves with central leaflets acuminate or strongly acuminate to a filiform tip; inflorescences narrowly racemose |
............ ............ ..14 Primocane leaves with central leaflets acute to short-acuminate; inflorescences widened towards their apices |