Blackberry, common name for several of the fruits and plants of a genus of the rose family. The ripe fruit is an aggregate of small, purplish-black drupes attached to a cone-shaped receptacle, which readily separates from the plant when the berries are picked. In other members of the genus, the receptacle separates from the drupes and remains on the plant (see Raspberry). More than 24 species of blackberry are known, including several called dewberry and albino varieties called white blackberry. One of the most common species is the sow-teat blackberry. Although the blackberry was highly developed as a wild fruit, it was rarely grown as a garden fruit until about 1850. Since then, it has been widely cultivated and has become a major commercial crop. See also Bramble.
Scientific classification: Blackberries belong to the genus Rubus of the family Rosaceae. The sow-teat blackberry is classified as Rubus allegheniensis.