Rubus Linnaeus (1753: 492), consisting of approximately 700 species, is one of the largest genera in the Rosaceae and is found in all continents except Antarctica (Lu & Boufford 2003). The genus Rubus is a taxonomically notoriously complex one, and species circumscription is complicated by hybridization, polyploidy, agamospermy, and lack of a universal species concept (Weber 1996). In 1982, Yu & Lu (1982: 464) proposed the name Rubus lobatus for a species endemic to the southern China, and placed it in sect.

Rubus Linnaeus (1753: 492) is one of the largest genera in the Rosaceae and species of Rubus occur on all continents except Antarctica (Lu & Boufford 2003, Wang & al. 2013). Rubus is a taxonomically notoriously complex genus. Its species circumscription is complicated by hybridization, polyploidy, agamospermy, and lack of a universal species concept (Weber 1996), which has resulted in broad disagreement about the number of species with estimates ranging from 250 (Mabberley 1997) to several thousand (Jennings 1988). In the latest revision, published nearly a century ago by Focke (1910, 1911, 1914), Rubus was divided into 12 subgenera. Most of the species were classified in subgenera Rubus, Idaeobatus (Focke) Focke (1910: 128), and Malachobatus (Focke) Focke (1910: 41).

Rubus Linnaeus (1753: 492), belonging to the monotypic tribe Rubeae of the subfamily Rosoideae (Potter et al. 2007), is one of the largest genera in the rose family (Rosaceae). The genus occurs in all continents except Antarctica (Lu & Boufford 2003, Wang et al. 2013). Rubus is a taxonomically notoriously complex group; its species circumscription is complicated by hybridization, polyploidy, agamospermy, and lack of a universal species concept (Weber 1996).