What is "dewberry"

Dewberry \Dew"ber`ry\, n. (Bot.)

1. The fruit of certain species of bramble ( Rubus); in England, the fruit of Rubus c[ae]sius, which has a glaucous bloom; in America, that of Rubus canadensis and Rubus hispidus, species of low blackberries.

2. The plant which bears the fruit.

   Feed him with apricots and dewberries.
   --Shak.

n. 1 Small brambles of the genus ''Rubus'' which have stems that trail along the ground. 2 # The European dewberry, ''Rubus caesius''. 3 # The American dewberry, species of (taxlink Rubus sect. Flagellares section noshow=1) 4 The purple to black berries of these plants.

1. n. any of several trailing blackberry brambles especially of North America [syn: dewberry bush, running blackberry]

2. blackberry-like fruits of any of several trailing blackberry bushes

The dewberries are a group of species in the genus Rubus, section Rubus, closely related to the blackberries. They are small trailing (rather than upright or high-arching) brambles with aggregate fruits, reminiscent of the raspberry, but are usually purple to black instead of red. Unlike many other Rubus species, dewberries have separate male and female plants (they are dioecious).

Dewberries are common throughout most of the Northern Hemisphere, sometimes thought of as a nuisance weed, but the leaves can be used for a tea, and the berries are sweet and edible. They can be eaten raw, or used to make cobbler, jam, or pie.

Around March and April, the plants start to grow white flowers that develop into small green berries. The tiny green berries grow red and then a deep purple-blue as they ripen. When the berries are ripe, they are tender and difficult to pick in any quantity without squashing them. The plants do not have upright canes like some other Rubus species, but have stems that trail along the ground, putting forth new roots along the length of the stem. The stems are covered with fine spines or stickers. The berries are sweet and, for many, less seedy than blackberries and worth the scratches and stains that come from picking them.

In the winter the leaves often remain on the stems, but may turn dark red. The leaves are sometimes eaten by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including peach blossom moths.

The European dewberry, Rubus caesius, grows more upright like other brambles, but is frequently restricted to coastal communities, especially sand dune systems. Its fruits are a deep, almost black, purple and are coated with a thin layer or 'dew' of waxy droplets. Thus, they appear sky-blue (caesius is Latin for pale blue). It is less sought after, because its fruits are small and retain a markedly tart taste even when fully ripe.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the town of Cameron, North Carolina was known as the "dewberry capital of the world" for large scale cultivation of this berry which was shipped out for wide spread consumption. Local growers made extensive use of the railroads, in the area, to ship them national and internationally.

Dewberry may refer to one of the following:

Dewberry is a historic home located at Beaverdam, Hanover County, Virginia. It was built in 1833, and is a five-part Palladian-plan brick dwelling. It consists of a two-story, three-bay, hip-roofed, central block connected to two-story flanking wings by one-story, one-bay hyphens. Also on the property are contributing formal gardens, a small rick outbuilding, and slave quarters.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.