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| Practical ecological knowledge for the temperate reader. |
Thimbleberry - Rubus parviflorus
Family: Rosaceaea- Rose [E-flora]
Food
- Berries: Usually ripen in mid-summer. Eaten fresh, dried in cakes, or stored in ooligan grease. Used for jam. They were often mixed with other berries. In some areas they were picked while still hard and pinkish, then allowed to ripen before being eaten. They were often eaten with fish or meat, or with dried or "ripened" salmon eggs.[Turner, Kuhnlein] "Raw or cooked[62, 101, 118, 183]. Dried for later use[183]. Sweet and pleasant[2, 85, 94]. Very seedy [155]. Rich in vitamin C[183]." [PFAF]
- Harvesting: "Thimbleberries were picked with the stems still attached when they were just turning pink. They were put into a cedar bark bag (in recent times, a pillowcase was used) with a little water and left for a day or two until they were red. Then the stems were taken off and the berries were eaten fresh or were dried..." [Turner&Bell2]
- Shoots: "...great quantities of the tender young shoots were eaten raw in the spring." [Turner&Bell] Young shoots peeled and eaten as a popular, widely used spring green vegetable. Sometimes they were toasted briefly over a fire before being peeled.[Turner, Kuhnlein] "Peeled and eaten cooked or raw[2, 85, 101, 118, 172]. The shoots are harvested as they emerge in the spring, and whilst they are still young and tender[161, 183]. They can be cooked like asparagus[257]. The shoots are rich in vitamin C[183]." [PFAF]
- Leaves: The large, shallowly lobed leaves were also used in food preparation. They were boiled with fish as a flavouring.[Turner, Kuhnlein]
- Flowers: Raw[172]. [PFAF]
Other Uses
- Basket Liner: "The leaves are used to line baskets etc for carrying soft fruit or other delicate items [99, 118]." [PFAF]
- Groundcover: "Plants are very vigorous and can be grown as a tall ground cover for large areas [208]." [PFAF]
- Soap: "A soap is obtained from the boiled bark[99, 118, 257]." [PFAF]
- Dye: "A purple to dull blue dye is obtained from the fruit[168]." [PFAF]
Medicinal Uses
- Leaves:
- "Antiemetic, astringent, blood tonic and stomachic[172, 257]." [PFAF]
- Infusion: "An infusion is used internally in the treatment of stomach complaints, diarrhoea and dysentery, anaemia, the spitting up of blood and to treat vomiting[238, 257]. An infusion has been taken by women when their periods are unusually long[257]." [PFAF]
- "The leaves were boiled with blackberry roots and vines (Rubus ursinus) and taken for vomiting and spitting of blood." [Turner&Bell2]
- Poultice: "A poultice of the dried powdered leaves has been used to treat wounds and burns[257]. The leaves have been crushed and rubbed over the skin to treat pimples and blackheads[257]. A poultice of the leaf ashes, mixed with oil, has been used to treat swellings[257]." [PFAF]
- "The Saanich chewed the dried brown leaves to ease stomach aches or to stop diarrhoea (op. cit.)." [Turner&Bell]
- Young Shoots: "The young shoots are alterative and antiscorbutic[257]." [PFAF]
- Roots:
- "The roots are appetizer, astringent, stomachic and tonic[172, 257]." [PFAF]
- Tea: A tea made from an infusion of roots was a blood tonic, a gynecological aid, and a treatment for stomach ailments. [Berries]
- Infusion: "An infusion has been used by thin people to help them gain weight[257]. An infusion has also been used in the treatment of stomach disorders, diarrhoea and dysentery[238, 257]." [PFAF]
- Decoction: "A decoction of the roots has been taken in the treatment of pimples and blackheads[257]." [PFAF]
Description
Synonyms
General Unarmed erect shrub.[HNW] Usually at least 1m tall.[PWOBC] 1-3m tall [HNW]
Lifecycle Perennial. [WildPNW] Growing at a medium rate. pollinated by Insects.[PFAF]
Flowers clusters of 2-9. [WildPNW] petals white,[HNM][PWOBC][WildPNW] rarely pinkish. 1-3cm long[HNW] Textured like crumpled paper.[WildPNW] hermaphrodite. [PFAF]
Fruits Red, slightly hairy.[WildPNW] scarlet, puberulent. [HNW]
Leaves "Alternate, deciduous, long-stalked, mapleleaf-shaped...". [IFBC-E-flora] palmately lobed. [HNW][PWOBC] Most leaf blades at least 8 cm wide; [PWOBC] "3-5 [HNW][WildPNW] finely toothed lobes pointed at tips".[WildPNW]
Stem without prickles [PWOBC][WildPNW] Bark brown and shredding.[WildPNW]
Habitat moist shady woods, below alpine. [WildPNW] Woodlands, canyons and open areas[62].[PFAF] Common along streams and in open woods.[HNW]
Range Throughout southern B.C. south of 56 degrees N.[IFBC-E-flora] Western N. America - Alaska to Ontario and California. Occasionally naturalized in Britain[17].[PFAF] Vancouver Island and the adjacent mainland, south to northern California.[WildPNW]
Ecological Indicator
A shade-tolerant/intolerant, submontane to subalpine, North American deciduous shrub distributed equally in the Pacific, Cordilleran, and Central regions. Occurs on nitrogen-rich soils within boreal, temperate, and mesothermal climates; its occurrence decreases with increasing elevation and latitude and increases with increasing continentality. Very common in open-canopy forests and early-seral communities on cutover and/ or burnt sites where it may hinder natural regeneration and growth of shade-intolerant conifers. Usually associated with Alnus rubra, Athyrium filix-femina, Epilobium angustifolium, Oplopanax horridus, Rubus spectabilis, Sambucus racemosa, Streptopus roseus, and Tiarella unifoliata. A nitrophytic species characteristic of Moder and Mull humus forms. [1.2]
Ethnobotany
Medicinal
- "Kwakiutl nation of the Northwest made a decoction, a boiled drink for treating bloody vomiting, that included blackberry roots, vines, and thimbleberry." [Meuninck EWPUH]
- "If a woman's period was unduly long, thimbleberry leaves were used to catch the menstrual blood. It was thought that this would shorten the time of the period (Boas, 1966)." [Turner&Bell2]
Nutritional
| Per g dry weight (Fruit) [Norton KaigHaida]
|
| Calories
| Protein g
| Carbohydrate g
| Ash g
| Lipid g
| Calcium mg
| Iron mg
| Magnesium mg
| Zinc mg
| Ascorbic acid mg
|
| 3.63
| 0.10
| 0.82
| 0.04
| 0.04
| 4.28
| 0.03
| 0.65
| 0.02
| 2.59
|
| Per 100g fresh weight (Fruit) [Turner,Kuhnlein]
|
| Calories kcal
| Water g
| Protein g
| Carbohydrate g
| Ash g
| Fat g
| Crude Fiber g
| Thiamine mg
| Riboflavin mg
| Niacin mg
| Vitamin C mg
|
| 99-105
| 74
| 1.7-3.1
| 23-24.7
| 0.6-1.1
| 1.2
| 11.9
| 0.03
| <0.01
| <0.6
| 63.6-78
|
| Per 100g fresh weight (Fruit) [Turner,Kuhnlein]
|
| Calcium mg
| Phosphorus mg
| Sodium mg
| Magnesium mg
| Copper mg
| Zinc mg
| Iron mg
| Manganese mg
|
| 89-129
| 62
| 0.8
| 19.6-44
| 0.2
| 0.4-0.7
| 0.7-0.9
| 1.8
|
| Per 100g fresh weight (peeled shoots) [Turner,Kuhnlein]
|
| Calories kcal
| Water g
| Protein g
| Fat g
| Carbohydrate g
| Crude Fiber g
| Ash g
| Thiamine mg
| Riboflavin mg
| Niacin mg
| Vitamin C mg
| Vitamin A RE
|
| 22
| 93
| 0.6
| 0.4
| 5.5
| 1.0
| 0.6
| 0.01
| 0.09
| 0.3
| 5.9
| 41
|
| Calcium mg
| Phosphorus mg
| Sodium mg
| Magnesium mg
| Copper mg
| Zinc mg
| Iron mg
| Manganese mg
| -
| -
| -
| -
|
| 24
| 26
| 1
| 29
| 0.4
| 0.4
| 0.4
| 0.2
| -
| -
| -
| -
|
- Per 100g dry weight (shoots & stems) Ascorbic acid 21.72 mg [Norton KaigHaida]
- Per 100g dry weight (berry) 259 mg Vitamin C [Turner, Kuhnlein]
Cultivation
"Easily grown in a good well-drained loamy soil in sun or semi-shade[1, 11, 200]. Can be grown in a woodland garden though it is less likely to fruit well in such a position[K]. This plant has perennial stems without prickles[200] and is less invasive than the related R. odoratus[182]. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus[200]." [PFAF]
"It occurs early on in succession of the ecosystem. Since it root sprouts, you can find thimbleberry growing after a forest fire." [Krumm PNBB]
Propagation
"Seed - requires stratification, is best sown in early autumn in a cold frame. Sow stored seed as early as possible in the year in a cold frame and stratify for a month at 3°c if sowing later than February. Prick out the seedlings when they are large enough to handle and grow on in a cold frame. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring of the following year. Tip layering in July. Plant out in autumn. Division in early spring." [PFAF]
References
Page last modified on Monday, December 30, 2019 7:17 PM
