Weed Alert: Wineberry

Image:  Reddish wineberry canes are visible now, Jay Heritage Center

Wineberry (Rubus phoenicolasius) — sometimes called wine raspberry — is an invasive shrub that creates prickly, impenetrable thickets. Introduced to North America in the 1890s as breeding stock for raspberries, wineberry displaces native vegetation, including native edible berry shrubs. You can differentiate wineberry from native raspberries because of the reddish appearance of wineberry's stems (caused by a dense coat of red hairs). This makes it easy to spot in early spring before it has leafed out.  

Image: Reddish stem hairs on wineberry cane, Leslie J. Mehrhoff, University of Connecticut, Bugwood.org