arctic raspberry
Rubus arcticus · Rosaceae
arctic raspberry (Rubus arcticus) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the Rosaceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 1 and warmer, down to about -62°F.
At a glance
| Type | forb-herb Derived |
|---|---|
| Lifecycle | perennial USDA |
| Native status | native USDA |
| Mature height | 1 ft USDA |
| Light | full-sun USDA |
| Growth rate | moderate USDA |
| Soil pH | 5–7 USDA |
| Bloom | June–August USDA |
| Flower color | Red USDA |
| Hardiness zones | 1 and warmer USDA |
| Guild layer | ground-cover Derived |
| Nursery availability | Routinely Available USDA |
USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.
Growing conditions
It needs full sun. Its drought tolerance is rated low. It handles periodically wet ground (USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance medium). It is recorded on soils from pH 5 to 7 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 1.
Size and growth
At maturity it reaches about 1 ft, making it a low, mat-forming plant. It grows at a moderate rate.
Bloom period
USDA records a bloom period of June through August. Flowers are red.
A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.
Foliage, flower and season
Summer foliage is green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. Its active growth period is spring. USDA rates its lifespan as short, so plan on replacing or resowing it rather than treating it as permanent structure.
What the site needs to provide
USDA records it across sites receiving 10 to 79 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 120 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 12 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.
Propagating it
It takes readily from seed, cuttings, bare root, container stock, corms and sprigs. Seed needs cold stratification — a period of moist chilling — before it will germinate, so sow in autumn or chill it artificially before a spring sowing.
Resilience and wildlife
Browsing animals rate it barely palatable — the sourced basis for calling it deer-resistant. Its fire tolerance is rated low, and it can resprout after damage. Its growth form is recorded as rhizomatous.
Role in a guild
Ground cover. In a layered planting this is the lowest layer — it shades soil, holds moisture, and suppresses weeds. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.
Tags
Related plants
Others in Rubus
- Allegheny blackberry Rubus allegheniensis
- oldfield blackberry Rubus alumnus
- sawtooth blackberry Rubus argutus
- Bailey's dewberry Rubus baileyanus
Similar role and hardiness
- eightpetal mountain-avens Dryas octopetala
- red currant Ribes triste
- arctic dock Rumex arcticus
- lingonberry Vaccinium vitis-idaea
- squashberry Viburnum edule
Where this data comes from
Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol RUAR, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.
- Quoted from USDA PLANTS: active growth period, Bloom, Bloom end, browse palatability, cold stratification, Drought tolerance, Edible, fall conspicuous, fertility requirement, fire tolerance, Flower color, flower conspicuous, foliage color, foliage porosity winter, foliage texture, frost free days min, fruit conspicuous, growth form, Growth rate, Hardiness zones, Lifecycle, lifespan, Light, Mature height, Minimum temperature, Native status, Nitrogen fixation, Nursery availability, precipitation max in, precipitation min in, propagation, resprout ability, root depth in, Soil pH, Soil pH (upper), Tolerance of wet soil, Toxicity.
- Derived by a fixed rule from those columns: Guild layer, Type.
Read our full data sources and methodology.
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