Oregon produces most of the processing blackberries in the United States. `Marion' blackberry (Rubus hybrid) is a trailing, thorny plant type with fruit highly prized for its unique flavor and superior processing quality. Blackberries developed in other parts of the United States grow well in Oregon but differ in flavor from `Marion' fruit. `Marion' blackberry plants are thorny and highly susceptible to freeze injury; growers desire a thornless, higher yielding, and more winter tolerant plant with similar fruit flavor and quality. This experiment was done to identify volatiles unique to `Marion' that may be incorporated into new germplasm. Forty-two volatile peaks were identified in blackberries using headspace gas chromatography and known standards. Ethylacetate and trans-2-hexenol were present in very low amounts and nerilidol was present in an unusually high amount in fresh `Marion' homogenates relative to other blackberry cultivars. Nerilidol is a volatile commonly associated with raspberry flavor and may come from the raspberry germplasm in the breeding background of `Marion'. It appears that the flavor of `Marion' fruit results from proportional differences in several volatile compounds rather than the presence of volatiles unique to this cultivar.

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