Every year I try to grow something a bit different and that includes edibles and ornamentals. Some turn out to be worth the effort, others are disappointing but at least I give them a go. Although I don’t take sugar in tea or coffee I grow stevia (sweet leaf) every now and then. The idea of growing a plant with leaves that taste sweet, that can be added to tea or other drinks to sweeten them without adding calories is too good to resist. The trouble is that stevia, although strictly a perennial, is frost tender and I rarely manage to keep the small, bushy shrubs alive till the second year and although it is not that difficult to grow from seed the small seedlings grow slowly at first. In warmer climes I am sure it is a breeze to grow, otherwise it would not be so commonly used commercially in foods and drinks.

So I was understandably excited when I discovered that there was a bramble with sweet leaves. It is Rubus chingii, a Chinese species that has along history of use in medicine and the dried berries (Fu-pen-zi) are used for a variety of purposes. A quick search on the net reveals they contain a bewildering array of chemicals that may be beneficial. But the leaves are also used as a herbal remedy, particularly when dried and used as a tea.

It is the variety R. chingii var. suavissimus (meaning sweet) that is selected for use as a sweetener and it seems that the innovative fruit breeding company Lubera has either bred or selected a clone and is selling it as ‘Innocence’ or Sweetleaf ®. I bought my plant as this although since the (French) supplier cannot be 100% relied on to supply what it sells (I have had a number of ‘wrong’ plants) it may just be the ordinary form. But, for now, I will take their word and believe it is ‘Innocence’.

It is supposed to be hardy and, like most rubus, it produces biennial stems that flower in the second year and then die. But most articles state that this plant rarely flowers or fruits. Perhaps selection over the years has produced a non-flowering clone. It is also said to require well-drained soil but can be grown in the ground or in containers. It should reach about 2m or more high and it could be included into an ornamental border. When I find out how sturdy the main shoots are I will be able to decide if it can be used as a free-standing shrub when it might form a plant just as ornamental as a Japanese maple.

So what have I discovered so far? Well I kept my plant in the greenhouse (just frost-free) over winter and it was immediately pounced on by aphids. I dealt with them. It had been cut back for postage and the cut piece immediately started dying back to a node so I pruned it quite hard to stimulate new shoots from the base. My soil grows great brambles but I struggle to grow raspberries, even in raised beds, which I think is because it lies so wet in winter. So I decided this rubus will be grown in a pot for now. I potted it into a mix of multipurpose and lime-free John Innes (in case it is intolerant of lime) and it is doing well. It has spent spring in the polytunnel and I think I will keep it in there this winter but it is now outside and is growing well.

The foliage is attractive, in a ‘hemp-like’ way. The stems are moderately prickly but the leaves have very few prickles. The strongest shoot is now about 1m high and there are many sideshoots. It is not an awful plant for a patio pot and it may even encourage people round for tea if they think you are actually growing ‘weed’.

I have picked a few leaves to taste now they have fully grown and they are ridiculously sweet. The texture of the mature leaves is a bit tough and there is a background of ‘green’ but your mouth is soon filled with a pervasive sweetness. I have not tried the dried leaves which is how you are supposed to store it for winter or even in drinks but, as the plant gets bigger I will.

Although the plant was commercially introduced by Lubera in 2021, I have not seen it for sale locally.

fu pen zi, lubera, rubus chingii, rubus chingii suavissimus, rubus fu pen zi, rubus inniocence, rubus innocence, rubus sweetleaf, stevia, sugar leaf