| Armenian blackberry (Himalaya) (Rubus armeniacus(R.procerus & R.discolor) |
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ODA rating: B
USDA Symbol: RUDI2
Oregon Armenian blackberry distribution
Click on image to view larger photo  Photo by Eric Coombs, Oregon Department of Agriculture
|  Photo by Tim Butler, Oregon Department of Agriculture
|  Photo by Dan Sharratt ,Oregon Department of Agriculture |
If images are downloaded and used from the ODA web site please be sure to credit the photographer. Description
Perennial; blooms June to August. Root buds produce trailing reddish stems with sharp spines that can grow more than 20 ft per season. Leaves alternate, palmate and compound with serrate margins. Flowers five petaled, white to light pink. Fruits aggregate.
Impacts
Armenian blackberry is the most widespread and economically disruptive of all the noxious weeds in western Oregon. It aggressively displaces native plant species, dominates most riparian habitats, and has a significant economic impact on right-of-way maintenance, agriculture, park maintanance and forest production. It is a significant cost in riparian restoration projects and physically inhibits access to recreational activities. It reproduces at cane apices (tips) and by seeds, which are carried by birds and animals. This strategy allow it to expand enmass across a landscape or to jump great distances and create new infestations. Any control strategy can be considered short-lived unless projects are planned and funded for the long-term.
Introduction
Armenian blackberry was first noted in Oregon in 1922 in Marion County.
Distribution in Oregon
 
Biological controls
At this time no approved biological agent is avialable for release in Oregon. In March of 2005 a rust was found severely impacting Armenian blackberry along a 100 mile stretch of the Oregon Coast. The rust has been confirmed as Phragmidium violaceum(Schultz) which has been used as a biocontrol agent for blackberry in parts of Australia, New Zealand and Chile. For more information about the black berry rust: Phragmidium violaceum.
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