Author Topic: Planting blackberries (Read 863 times)

Star1pup · « **on:** April 08, 2006, 02:01:37 AM »

I have ordered some thornless blackbeery plants and they should arrive soon. Any suggestions about how to plant them? I just thought some of you might have some good ideas that will help me do a good job.

Graybeard · « **Reply #1 on:** April 08, 2006, 05:37:49 AM »

Go ahead now and start planning how you will stake them. If you don't stake them they will run along the ground and you'll never be able to control the weeds among them. I just planted them like anything else. I dug a hole with a shovel that was a bit wider than the blade of the shovel and made sure the soil placed back into the hole was loosened good. If you have a real poor soil you might want to mix in some organic matter with the native soil but there is no sense trying to use only high quality organic mix in the hole as the roots will be out several feet in all directions within a year so they will mostly be in the native soil anyway.

I ended up giving up on mine as they were just more trouble than they were worth. I had intended them as a secondary crop to my blueberry farm but it just never worked well for me as the maintenace on them was more than the value of the crop.

Star1pup · « **Reply #2 on:** April 08, 2006, 11:56:01 AM »

Thanks Bill for the advice. I was planning to put in fence posts and use "U" bolts to attach wood cross pieces. Then, run wire from the cross pieces the length of the row. I saw that in a book somewhere, but have never tried it.

GBO MGMT · « **Reply #3 on:** April 08, 2006, 01:00:50 PM »

Yup that should work as good as any. I had in two rows each about 200' or so long. Just ended up deciding the work required outweighted the profit.

jvs · « **Reply #4 on:** April 08, 2006, 03:31:10 PM »

What do you plan on doing with the Blackberrys?

I put some thornless blackberry plants in a few years ago and I find that they are almost too sour to eat fresh. They do make an excellent wine though.

It could be the type of Thornless plants that I got too. Mine came from Alaska. They seem to start new growth where ever the canes touch the ground, so in a few years I should have plenty for jelly and wine making.

Last year while fishing I pulled a wild thorned blackberry plant out, put it in a pot for the winter and I plan on setting it this spring. This type is sweet when ripe.

Greybeard · « **Reply #5 on:** April 08, 2006, 05:24:10 PM »

I had about 6-8 different varieties planted and all were as sweet as can be WHEN RIPE but sour before then. The do seem to take a bit longer to ripen than wild berries but once ripe seem just as sweet.

GeneRector · « **Reply #6 on:** April 09, 2006, 02:41:25 AM »

Howdy! I have tried to plant thornless blackberries in the past and have had no luck with them. However, last year we had lots of wild dewberry plants that yielded lots of fruit. My daughter and I picked a lot of them and they made several really good cobblers. I don't think I will try planting any more blackberry plants, I will just wait for the wild dewberries to produce.

Star1pup · « **Reply #7 on:** April 09, 2006, 04:15:57 AM »

I had a lot of nice big blackberries here when I first bought the land. Then the power company sprayed along their right of way and that was the end of them. That was many years ago and they just never came back. I hope to get a few and am not planting a large row. I have 4 short rows of blueberries and they do well so I hope the blackberries will also do well.