Herb. No. 087 · Rosaceae
Northern temperate cane — Europe and North America share the raspberry habit.
Native · Europe · North America
Native Also grown
LegalGentleplant
Raspberry leaf
Rubus idaeus
Medicinal herbsKitchenHarvestCompanions
The cane you grow for fruit — the leaf is an astringent tea with a long midwifery folklore.
Red raspberry leaf is a tannin-rich astringent traditionally sipped in late pregnancy in some folk systems. Evidence that it ‘prepares the uterus’ is mixed and not a reason to skip obstetric care. The fruit is a better daily food. Young spring leaf is the herbal crop.
Flavor
Green tea, faint berry, a pleasant astringency — one of the easier herbal cups.
Parts used
Leaf · Fruit as food
Helpful
- A fruit crop and a tea crop
- Pleasant taste
Cautions
- Pregnancy tea is folklore, not a labor plan
- Thorns
- Leaf from sprayed canes is not tea