New records of naturalized Rubus in southern Africa

Rubus niveus Thunb. and R. phoenicolasius Maxim, are recorded for the first time in southern Africa. Notes are given on their morphology, present distribution and weed status.


IN T RO D U CT ION
As pointed out in a previous paper (Stirton, 1981), the taxonomic problems of Rubus in southern Africa will only be solved after years of intensive field work and genetic and taxonomic evaluation.However, because an accurate taxonomy is economically im portant to silviculture and agriculture, results will be published as they become available.This paper records for the first time in southern Africa two in troduced Rubus spp., which have become naturaliz ed, namely Rubus niveus, the Java bramble and R. phoenicolasius, the wineberry.Rubus niveus Thunb., Dissert. Rubi 9 (1813); Focke in Biblthca bot. 72: 182 (1911); Graham in FI.Trop.E. A fr., Rosaceae 40 (I960); Hanizah, Toha & Van Steenis, Mountain Flora of Java, t. 45, 5 (1972).Type: Thunberg s. n. herb. no. 12275 (UPS, holo., photo.!).
Primocanes up to 2 m, tip-rooting, bright green but covered with dense white bloom, eglandular, glabrous, round, prickles either patent or slightly deflexed (Fig. 3.1).Floricanes reddish, glabrous, mostly without bloom.Leaves 3-5-partite on flori canes, but mostly 7-partite on primocanes; upper sur face of leaflets thinly hairy, sulcinervate, dark yel low-green, lower surface white woolly with yellowish venation, occasionally armed with small recurved prickles; terminal leaflet broadly ovate or elliptic, apex acute to acuminate, base truncate to rounded, larger than laterals; petioles and petiolules tomen tose, armed with falcate or deflexed prickles.Stipules free, ascending, becoming patent, winged at base (Fig. 3.2).Inflorescence broadly pyramidal or round ed, terminal, ± 12-flowered on floricanes, 2 to 4-flowered on primocanes, mostly axillary, leafy, rhachis tomentose.Sepals up to 6 mm long, ex ceeding the petals, densely pilose, tips green and glabrous.Petals bright pink, shorter than calyx lobes, 5 mm long and wide, suborbicular with crinkled margins, apices incurved, touching.Anthers black, exceeding pink stigmas; filaments pink.Carpels densely tomentose (Fig. 4.1); fruits orange when young, turning red and finally greyish purple.ma, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Java, Bali, Flores, Timor, Luzon and Celebes (Kalkm an, 1976).In Africa it has been recorded from Kenya, Tan zania, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Swaziland (Fig. 2).Van Steenis (1976) considers the African plants to be conspecific with the Asian plants.Java bramble has been found in grassland, along wooded stream-banks and among rocks in tall herb communities.It easily tolerates the semi-shaded con ditions prevailing in Eucalyptus plantations, but tends to favour higher altitude areas between 1 000 and 1 600 metres.It flowers between January and April.
The origin of Java bramble in Africa is still speculative. Graham (1960) has suggested that this species may have been introduced into east Africa from India or Malaysia, but he cited no evidence.Is this species a recent introduction or has it occurred in Africa for a very long time?This question is difficult to answer and one can only surmise from what little indirect evidence there is.It is not known whether the species occurs in Malawi and its occurrence in Z im babwe is difficult to explain.One o f the Swaziland specimens (Miller 5/200) has a note that suggests R. niveus was introduced into Swaziland from Kenya.
As regards South Africa, there seems little doubt that Java bramble is a recent arrival in the south-eastern Transvaal.Firstly, it is unlikely that early collectors such as G alpin and Thorncroft would have missed collecting such a distinctive species and secondly, my own observations are that Java bramble has rapidly expanded its range over the last five years.This ex tension has been particularly noticeable from Havelock in Swaziland into the Transvaal towards Barberton.Com pton remarks in a note on his collec tion 25060 that the plant is a weed in the Ukutula area.During an excursion in 1977 to the Barberton-Havelock area, I gained the impression that if not checked Java bramble could become a menace in forests o f the eastern Transvaal.Its eradication should begin now, while infestations are still small and economically controllable.2, ripe fruit with ex tended sepals; 3, opened flower with small, erect petals and extended sepals.
C. E. Gust.There is, however, only a superficial resemblance to these species.R. niveus is easily separated from these and most other Rubus spp. in South Africa by its distinctive concolorous leaves, almost paralleled secondary sulcinate nervation (Fig. 5) together with its small pink flowers, tomentose fruits and white bloom on the primocanes.The nearest species which could be confused with it is R. ludwigii Eckl. & Zeyh., which also has similar flowers, hairy fruits, concolorous leaves and a white bloom.It differs from R. niveus, however, in its deeply incised leaflets and few secondary veins, regardless of the size of the leaflets.

R. niveus, like many
European brambles o f the subgenus Eubatus Focke, produces positively geotropic cane tips during the Autum n equinox when its fruits are ripening.By May the cane tips have entered the ground and have proliferated a mass of adventitious roots (Fig. 1.5).
Primocanes up to 2 m tall, robust, arching, tiprooting, axis terete with scattered, straight or falcate prickles, densely covered by red acicles, stalked glands and a fine wispy white pubescence.Floricane axis similarly covered.Leaves 3-partite, or upper most simple; petioles and petiolules with a thin wispy pubescence, short acicles and reddish glandular hairs, armed with falcate pricklets; upper surface of leaflets thinly-hairy, green or greyish green, lower surface densely white tomentose with straight prick lets scattered along the nerves; terminal leaflet broad ly ovate, 7-10 cm long, 3-6 cm wide, cordate or subtruncate at base, apex abruptly short pointed, mar gins coarsely biserrate, apices of teeth apiculate; lateral leaflets smaller, oval, assymmetrical, 3-5 cm  Wineberry is native in Japan, North Korea, South Korea and northern China (Bailey, 1923).In Japan it occurs in plagioseral grassland of the subarctic macroclimatic zones and is one of the principal species in the fourth (shrubby stage) o f the six successional stages to climax (Numata, 1974).It was in troduced from Japan into Europe by Maximovicx in the 1870's (Hooker, 1880) and is today still cultivated for its ornamental value and its edible fruit (Heslop-Harrison, 1968).In 1890 it was introduced into the United States by John Childs from seeds obtained in Japan by G .Georgeson and sent to J. T. Lovett of New Jersey (Bailey, 1941).It has since escaped culti vation and is now established along roadsides, in thickets and in open woods in several parts of the north-eastern United States (Ferrald, 1950).It is also naturalized in parts o f Europe.
Marr & Scotney 8 collected in Richm ond was severely affected by a necrotic viral disease.

Fig. 1 .
Rubus niveus has a wide Asian distribution: H im a laya (Kashmir to Sikkim), S. India.Sri Lanka.Bur *Botanical Research Institute, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Private Bag X101, Pretoria, 0001.
Previously in South Africa R. niveus was referred to either R. intercurrens C. E. Gust, orR.immixtus
nc nc «» uo m o ik m u F i g .7.-Distribution of Rubus phoenicolasius in southern Africa.R. phoenicolasius is an introduced ornamental andberry plant that has escaped from gardens and is now locally naturalized in parts of the Natal Midlands (Fig.7).It has been found in wasteland and in natur al veld and is fairly rare.The earliest record o f escape is 1950.N a t a l .-2930 (Pietermaritzburg): Balgowan (-AC), Marr & Scotney 8 \ Highlands, Richmond area (-CD), Beald 719.