Blackberry bushes are often called brambles, from a word that means prickly. The plants are characteristically armed with stiff, sharp prickles along the stems and midrib of leaves. The perennial shrubs reproduce new canes (shoots) every year; however, the annual fruit grows on the previous year's canes.

Blackberries are best known for their sweet, edible fruits. While they are referred to as berries, they are actually small clusters of tiny drupelets, each with a single seed. The fruit is grown commercially for jellies, preserves, and desserts and may also be used to produce blackberry wine or vinegar.

The plant is known to have medicinal properties and is used by herbalists to treat dysentery. The ancient Greeks used blackberry extract as a remedy for gout.

The fruits are an important food source for many wildlife species

including black bear, deer, rabbit, and numerous songbirds. Deer also browse on the leaves and woody shoots. Small mammals and game birds frequently use blackberry thickets for shelter and nesting sites.

Blackberry is widely distributed throughout the eastern United States. It is a fairly hardy plant that grows in a variety of climates and may do well in both cool, northeastern regions and hot, central Florida locations.

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