About Rubus niveus Thunb.
Rubus niveus Thunb. is a shrub that reaches 1 to 2.5 meters (3 feet 3.4 inches to 8 feet 2.4 inches) in height. Its stems are initially whitish and covered in tomentum—a dense layer of short, matted hairs—later becoming glabrous (hairless) and ranging from green to purple. The leaves are pinnate, bearing 5 to 11 leaflets, most often 7 or 9; individual leaflets measure 2.5 to 8 centimeters (1.0 to 3.1 inches) long and 1 to 4 centimeters (0.4 to 1.6 inches) wide, with a dark green upper surface and a dense pale grey to white tomentose lower surface. Flowers are approximately 1 centimeter in diameter, with five dark pink to red petals. The fruit is 8 to 12 millimeters (0.3 to 0.5 inches) in diameter, densely covered in grey tomentum; it starts dark red and ripens to black. This species is native to southern Asia. Its native range extends from Afghanistan east through India (including Assam, East Himalaya, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and West Himalaya), across to Tibet, southern and north central China, and Taiwan. It also extends south into Indo-China (Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam) and reaches Malesia, where it occurs natively in Java. It has been introduced to many countries and regions: South America (Bolivia, southern Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Trinidad and Tobago), the United States (the states of Florida and Hawaii), Africa (Ethiopia, the Galápagos, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), and South Africa (the Cape Provinces, the Northern Provinces, and Swaziland). It has become naturalized and invasive in Hawaii and the Galápagos Islands. Rubus niveus is cultivated for its edible fruit. According to Pancholi & Rana 2020, Rubus niveus berries have gastroprotective, antioxidant, and nutraceutical properties.
