Blackberry – Fruit garden

Blackberry is a sweet tasty treat that can easily be grown in a home garden. The perennial plants will provide plenty of fresh fruit for your table year after year with little care, but there are a few things you should know to successfully grow. Blackberry is easily grown from one-year old bareroot plants. These need planting when they’re dormant during mid or late winter. Avoid times when the ground is waterlogged or frozen.fesh berries are pretty expensive to buy because there’s only a narrow window of time between harvest and decline. You can grow your own, however, and you’ll love the fresh-off-the-vine flavor. Although they’re considered a cool-season crop, berries are easy to grow in most parts of the country. Berry brambles love to ramble out of control, but with some extra care and attention, gardeners can tame even the most arduous vines.

Scientific Name: Rubus

Common Name: Blackberries

How to maintain Blackberry:

Varieties:

Rosborough,Womack, and Brison are varieties suitable for growing at home. Rosborough has been the heaviest producer.

Soil Type:

Any well-drained soil will do. Amendments are OK, but not necessary.

Planting Time:

Berry plants may be planted from late January through March.
Root cuttings (pieces) or rooted cuttings are both successful.

Spacing:

Plant three to four feet apart within a row, and eight to ten feet between rows.

Irrigation:

Berry plants should be well-watered when set out. If plants are irrigated with a hose or a bubbler head, water every three to seven days for the first two months, depending on temperature. When established, they can be watered in this way every one to two weeks. If drip or mini-sprinkler irrigation is used, apply one to two inches of water per week, irrigating every day when the plants are young, and every one to two days once the plants are established. Irrigate more frequently during dry, hot weather, when plants are flowering and when fruit is ripening.

Fertilizing:

About one month after planting, sprinkle ½ to ⅓ cup of 13-13-13 or 10-10-10 fertilizer in a 2-foot circle around each plant, and in June or July, reapply the same amount of fertilizer in a 2½- to 3-foot circle. The succeeding years, apply 1 cup in a 3-foot circle in early March and again in late July

Propagation:

Plants may send up shoots from the roots. These may be dug and replanted.

Pests & Diseases:

Blackberries have few disease or insect problems, except for occasional mites. Birds may be a problem in some areas, so netting should be considered. Fruit may also become sunburned late in the harvest season. Shading may help reduce sunburn.

Yield:

Plants will deliver 3 to 10 pounds of organic product per plant starting at age three. Organic product ought to mature start toward the beginning of May, and proceed for 3 to 4 weeks. Natural product is sweetest when dull black.