Medicinal plant

Raspberry

Rubus spp.

Astringent leaf tea, nourishing fruit.

The leaf is an astringent traditionally used for loose stools and toning mucous tissues. The fruit is a nutritive food rich in fiber and polyphenols.

Properties

Astringent — Tightens and tones tissues; often drying

Uterine tonic — Traditionally supports tone and function of uterine tissue

Nutritive — Provides nourishing minerals or other nutrients

Energetics
Cooling Drying Toning
Raspberry (Rubus spp.), historical botanical illustration

Growing and using it

Life cycle

Perennial root system with biennial canes.

What to buy

A named disease-free red raspberry cane or bare-root plant. For an easy Vermont harvest, choose a hardy primocane-bearing red raspberry such as Heritage.

Best way to start

Bare-root cane or nursery plug.

Seed starting

Not recommended for a named fruiting variety because seedlings do not reliably come true.