Tayberry

Tayberry (Rubus fruticosus x R. idaeus) is a cultivated shrub in the genus Rubus of the family Rosaceae patented in 1979 as a cross between a blackberry and a red raspberry, and named after the river Tay in Scotland.

The fruit is sweeter, much larger, and more aromatic than that of the loganberry, itself a blackberry and red raspberry cross. The tayberry is grown for its edible fruits which can be eaten raw or cooked, but the fruit do not pick easily by hand and cannot be machine harvested, so they have not become a commercially grown berry crop. As a domestic crop, this plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

History

The tayberry was patented by Derek L. Jennings of Dundee, Scotland, and released in 1979 by the Scottish Horticultural Research Institute, Invergowrie, Scotland. The tayberry was named after the river Tay in Scotland.

Description

The tayberry fruit are cone shaped and are a reddish-purple color when ripe. They can be up to 4 cm (1 ¹⁄₂ in) long. Similar to the blackberry, the receptacle (the "core") remains in the berry when it is picked. The tayberry is less acidic than the loganberry, with a strong, tart flavor. The plant has a growth habit similar to that of the blackberry. Fruit grow on short laterals on prickly canes 1.8 to 2.1 m (6 to 7 ft) long. The cropping period is long, from early mid to late summer.