'Rubus' Loganberry

ℹ Dive into the enchanting world of loganberries – a captivating blend of raspberries and blackberries that unfolds like a sweet symphony on your taste buds. Picture the juicy essence of a raspberry harmonizing with the deep, complex notes of a blackberry, creating a flavor profile that is nothing short of sublime. The loganberry, with its deep burgundy allure, and thornless canes beckons you into a realm of taste that's both familiar and refreshingly unique. Each succulent bite releases a cascade of sweetness, balanced with a punch of complex flavored tartness that keeps your palate dancing. Whether enjoyed fresh, transformed into a luscious jam, or infused into desserts, the loganberry is a culinary marvel that turns ordinary moments into extraordinary memories. Embrace the allure of the loganberry – a berry that transcends the ordinary, leaving you with a lingering appreciation for its exceptional flavor. The Loganberry has a more intense flavor in comparison to the Tayberry, that has a more delicate flavour. Let the loganberry be the muse for your culinary adventures, and savor the magic it adds to every delightful bite! 

The loganberry, a hexaploid fruit, resulted from the unintentional crossbreeding of Rubus ursinus 'Aughinbaugh' (octaploid) as the female parent and Rubus idaeus 'Red Antwerp' (diploid) as the male parent in 1881, Santa Cruz, California. This serendipitous creation was orchestrated by James Harvey Logan (1841–1928), an American judge and horticulturist, dissatisfied with existing blackberry varieties. Logan crossbred two blackberry cultivars, 'Aughinbaugh' and 'Texas Early,' likely coinciding with flowering and fruiting of an old red raspberry variety, 'Red Antwerp,' planted nearby in his yard. Gathering and planting the resulting seeds yielded 50 seedlings, one of which developed into the loganberry, exhibiting larger size and increased vigor compared to the 'Aughinbaugh' blackberry. This loganberry, along with its sibling, the 'Mammoth' blackberry, originated from Logan's experiments. Contrary to an earlier theory, genetic crosses between raspberry and blackberry cultivars validated the loganberry's parentage, disproving the notion of it being a red-fruiting form of the Californian blackberry Rubus ursinus. Logan introduced progeny from the original plant to Europe in 1897, and later in 1933, a prickle-free mutation known as the 'American Thornless' loganberry was developed.