Newsletter
Rubus sumatranus Miq.
by Mrs. Nor Ezzawanis Abdullah Thani
Newsletter
Rubus sumatranus Miq.
by Mrs. Nor Ezzawanis Abdullah Thani

Raspberry (Rubus idaeus) is well-known for its edible and delicious fruit. It belongs to the genus Rubus in the large family Rosaceae. This genus also includes several other well-known and tasty fruits such as blackberry, boysenberry, dewberry and loganberry.

In Peninsular Malaysia, Rubus is represented by about 6 species and 4 varieties that occur from the lowlands up to montane areas. Rubus sumatranus is one of these. It occurs in open places from about 750 m altitude but is more often collected in montane forest at about 1400 to 1500 m altitude.

The specific epithet ‘sumatranus’ is derived from the place where the type specimen was collected (Teijsmann s.n., Sumatra). It is distributed from NE India, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, S China, Taiwan and Japan, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia and Java.

Rubus sumatranus is an erect or scrambling shrub to 2 m tall. The mid-green stems are densely covered with reddish brown glandular hairs, while curved prickles are sparsely distributed along the stems. The leaves are imparipinnate with 2–3 opposite pairs of leaflets. The leaflets are oblong to ovate, with a cuneate to rounded base, acuminate apex, serrate margins with a reddish brown to purplish red point at the tip of each serration, and has scattered, white hairs on the upper surface of the lamina. Similar hairs are also found on the lower surface of the midrib with dense, reddish brown glandular hairs and scattered triangular, recurved prickles. The 6–12 pairs of secondary veins sometimes fork near the margin, while the tertiary veins are scalariform-reticulate. The inflorescences are axillary and up to 13 cm long. The flowers are bisexual with the hypanthium up to 5 mm across. There are five triangular sepals and five obovate, white petals. The aggregate fruits are up to 1.5 × 0.8 cm when fresh, ellipsoid and dark green when young but ripen ellipsoid to almost globose and orangish-red. They are tasteless although edible.

QR Code
Scan QR code for mobile experience

Other articles

Manilkara zapota (Sapotaceae)

Mrs. Syazwani Binti Azeman   •   29 Feb 2024   •   338 views

Sonerila griffithii C.B.Clarke (Melastomataceae)

Dr. Avelinah Julius   •   31 Jan 2024   •   718 views

Meistera lappacea (Ridl.) Škorničk. & M.F.Newman (Zingiberaceae)

Siti Eisya Nabiha Damahuri & Dr. Avelinah Julius   •   31 Dec 2023   •   896 views

Ploiarium alternifolium (Bonnetiaceae)

Mrs. Syazwani Bt. Azeman   •   15 Dec 2023   •   1344 views

Phaenicophaeus curvirostris (Shaw, 1810)

Nurfahana Binti Mo`in & Ms. Nur Aina Amira Binti Mahyudin   •   30 Nov 2023   •   1222 views
Get updates and an exclusive news when you sign up to our free newsletter.
Malaysia Biodiversity Information System (MyBIS)   by   Malaysia Biodiversity Centre (MBC)


Copyright © 2024, Malaysia Biodiversity Centre (MBC), Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES). All rights reserved. DISCLAIMER - The Malaysian Government, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability (NRES), Malaysia Biodiversity Centre (MBC) and Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) shall not be liable for any loss or damage caused by the usage of any information obtained from this website. By entering this site, you acknowledge and agree that no portion of this site, including but not limited to names, logos, trademarks, patents, sound, graphics, charts, text, audio, video, information or images are either MyBIS property or the property permitted by third-party and shall not be used without prior written approval from the owner(s).
Best viewed using latest Mozila Firefox, Google Chrome and Internet Explorer 10 with Resolution 1024 x 768px or above. Version 2.0 / 2016
Website Citation: MyBIS (2024). Malaysia Biodiversity Information System. Published on the Internet https://www.mybis.gov.my/, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Sustainability, Malaysia Biodiversity Centre & Forest Research Institute Malaysia. [Retrieved 29 March 2024].