RASPBERRY, Rebus idaus, the most valued of all the species of rebus (q.v.). It has pinnate leaves, with 5 or 3 leaflets, which are white and very downy beneath, stems nearly erect, downy, and covered with very numerous small weak prickles; drooping flowers, and erect whitish petals as long as the calyx. The wild raspberry has scarlet fruit, and is found in thickets and woods throughout the whole of Europe and the ; n. of Asia. It is common in Britain. The raspberry has long been in cultivation for its fruit. There are many cultivated varieties, with red, yellow, and white fruit, much exceeding the wild kind in size. The stem in a wild state is 3 to 4 ft. high; in cultiva tion. 6 to 8 ft. or upward. Some of the cultivated varieties are also more branching than is common hi a wild state, the stein of the wild plant being simple or nearly so. The root is creeping, perennial; the stems only biennial, busing fruit in the second year, woody, hut with very large pith. Plantations of raspberries are most easily made by means of suckers. The raspberry loves a light rich soil, and is rather partial to a shady situation. The tall kinds are unsuitable in situations much exposed to Winds, as the stems are easily broken. The rows are generally about 4 ft. apart, the plants 3 to 4 ft.
apart in the rows. The young stems are thinned out to allow free access of air to those, which are left. Stakes are often used to support the stems, or they are variously tied together. The fruit is used for dessert; for jams, jellies, etc.; for making or flavoring many kinds of sweetmeats; and mixed with brandy, wine, or vinegar, for the preparation of R. syrup, R. vinegar, etc. Different preparations of it are used in medicine in cases of fever, inflammation, etc. Raspberry vinegar is a particularly grateful and cooling drink in fevers. Raspberries, fermented either alone or along with currants or cherries, yield a strong and very agreeable wine, from which a very powerful spirit can be made.— tinie of the other species of rubus, most nearly resembling the raspberry, produce also agreeable fruits. R. odoratus is a highly olaamental shrub, a native of Canada and the northern states of America, is frequent in gardens both in Europe and America, but rarely produces its fruit iu Britain.