Rubus spp.
Blackberry (includes dewberry, raspberry, thimbleberry, & salmonberry)
Cahuilla: pikwlyam (Bean and Saubel 1972:134)
Comanche: panatsayaaʔ (Kavanagh 2008:140)
Location in Texas: all TX except NW & further N; very common in Travis Co.
Form: herb, low shrub, shrub, vine; perennial.
Species:
Rubus allegheniensis
Rubus arcticus
Rubus argutus / Sawtooth blackberry
Rubus canadensis
Rubus flagellaris / Northern dewberry
Rubus frondosus
Rubus idaeus
Rubus leucodermis / Wild black raspberry
Rubus odoratus
Rubus occidentalis
Rubus parviflorus / Western thimbleberry
Rubus pubescens
Rubus spectabilis / Salmonberry
Rubus strigosus
Rubus trivialis / Southern dewberry
Rubus ursinus
Rubus vitifolius / Pacific dewberry
Food
Fruits – eaten by Apache (Mails 1974), Iroquois (Waugh 1916:145), Caddo (Swanton 1996:132), Asinai (Hatcher 1927d:153), Comanche (Kavanagh 2008:140), Ute (Smith 1974:65), and Choctaw (Swanton 2001:45). Mixed with water and maple sugar to make a beverage commonly drunk by the Iroquois (Waugh 1916:145).
At least 18 species in the genus were known to be eaten by various American Indian tribes, including; the Apache, Asinai (Tejas), Blackfeet, Caddo, Cahuilla, Northern Cheyenne, Chippewa, Choctaw, Comanche, Cree, Dakota, Flathead, Gosiute, Iroquois, Klamath, Northern Maidu, Menominee, Navajo, Numlaki, Ojibwe, Omaha, Pomo, Pawnee, Ponca, Shasta, Ute, Yokia, & Yuki.
These tribes often ate the fruits fresh and sometimes dried them for storage. They could be ground into a paste before sun-drying, since they have so much water in them.
Shoots / Foliage – The whole plant appears to be edible, but some parts are more astringent than others. The Cree and Iroquois were known to peel the shoots of certain species and eat the inner part. A tea was also made of the young shoots twigs or leaves of certain species.
Gathering Season – August and September (Bean and Saubel 1972:20). October-November was hȧsh bissa – “blackberry month” for the Choctaw (Swanton 2001:45). Another source gave June for hȧsh bissa (Swanton 2001:45).
Around 1530 Cabeza de Vaca witnessed the Indians of San Luis Island on the Texas Gulf Coast spend the whole month of April eating large quantities of southern dewberry, celebrating, and dancing.
Special trips were made by various tribes to gather blackberries in season where they grew abundantly.
Notes – It can be challenging to distinguish different species in the Rubus genus, even for taxonomists. But they all have edible fruit.
Medicine
The roots of at least 8 different species were used by at least 8 different tribes (the Cahuilla, Cherokee, Kashaya Pomo, Nomlaki, Ojibwe, Omaha, Yokia, & Yuki) to treat diarrhea. They were made into a infusion and drunk for the purpose. Given the commonality and potential deadliness of diarrhea, this is a great medicine to know for survival.
The Menominee and Ojibwe both used an infusion of the roots of certain species to wash sore eyes.
ID
You can identify it by its thorny stems, its odd number of leaflets (often 3 or 5, never 1), its 5-petaled white flowers, but most of all, its blackberry-like fruits (which are aggregated drupelets).
Experimentation
I have eaten the fruits of various species from Texas and California on many occasions. The fruits are easy to identify and make a reliable food when in season.
I find a large patch and gather a whole lot to preserve by cooking and canning.
The flowers or petals are edible and mostly tasteless, but they make an attractive garnish for dishes such as salads.
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