Ribbonberry

The Ribbonberry is the edible fruit of the flowering plant of the Ribbonberry Bush, or Rubus Horristus.

It is a flowering perennial in the rose family, which means the bush has short, sharp spikes all year round. It is not a plant that can be easily touched, apart from the flowers. They give the Ribbonberry Bush its name, trailing long vines covered with flowers from the top of the plant. These 'ribbons' tend to average about five feet long. Blooming in early spring, the flowers on the tall bush are pointed with five pink petals. As the season changes to summer the flowers give way to hard green berries that will, as summer goes on, ripen and soften to a cheerful pink. This creates long ribbons of berries that are easily harvested if one is mindful of the spikes.

The flavor of the Ribbonberry is very mellow, a light sweetness with just a hint of tart. But the real draw of the berries is their scent, a heady floral boquet that oddly enough, does not transfer over to the taste.

The plant has several uses in Yuriban culture. The first and foremost are the use of the berries in culinary fields. They are eaten raw, as a preserve, in pastries, and cooked to lend mellow flavor to meat dishes. It is also not uncommon to take a ribbon from the berrybush, and form it into a wreathe to lend the floral scent to areas. And finally when stripped of thorns, the wood does have use as a supple construction material in smaller crafts.