Many people think that in order to eat blackberries, you need to look for places where they grow. But this is not entirely true, because blackberries can be grown in your garden! Planting a blackberry does not take much time, and caring for it is very simple and brings only pleasure.
Content:
- Types and varieties - what you need to know before buying a seedling
- Selection of seedlings
- Choosing a Landing Site - Standard Recommendations
- Preparing the site and pit for planting
- Time to plant seedlings
- The location of the bushes on the site
- Care throughout the season
- Blackberry trellis installation
- How to prune and shape a bush
- Plant watering and sun protection
- Weeding, loosening, mulching
- top dressing
- Preparing for the winter
- reproduction
- Diseases and pests
- Storage and use of berries - preparation and timing
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Types and varieties - what you need to know before buying a seedling
Blackberries have many advantages over raspberries, which grow in the backyard of most gardeners. It is much more productive (2 or even 3 times) than raspberries, blackberries have larger berries. The plant is less demanding on soil fertility and watering, resistant to diseases and pests.
Blossoming and fruiting blackberry in the middle July-August, and remontant varieties until the onset of cold weather. Therefore, you can enjoy tasty and healthy berries even when raspberries, Strawberry, strawberry, Cherry have been fertile for a long time.
A varietal plant is easy to identify by the excellent type of berries
Blackberries, regardless of variety, belong to one of three groups:
Variety Kitatini
Blackberry varieties that deserve attention:
Garden centers, shops and nurseries have a wide variety of varieties. Therefore, every gardener is sure to find a plant to his taste.
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Blackberry seedlings
Modern garden centers offer plants with both open and closed root systems.
Advantages and disadvantages of buying blackberries with ACS and ZKS:
- OKS - the buyer can assess the degree of development of the root system, see damaged or diseased roots (if any). However, the transportability of such seedlings is lower, and it is better to plant them immediately after purchase.
- ZKS (container) - such seedlings can be transported and stored for a long time, planting is carried out at any time - even in summer. But such plants are more expensive, and the development of their root system may be weaker, since it grew in cramped container conditions.
- ZKS (roots packed in matting with an earthen clod) - most likely, the manufacturer of such seedlings is a foreign company, but domestic manufacturers also use this type of packaging. The implementation period is short, you need to ask how long the plant is stored in the store. Pay attention to the integrity of the package and the humidity of the earthen clod, as well as the location of the root neck, it should be on the surface of the earthen clod. Landing is possible only in spring and autumn.
Annual seedlings are better suited for planting, the root system of which is well developed. The stems should ideally be 2, each 0.5 cm in girth. A prerequisite for buying a seedling is the presence of a formed root bud.
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Choosing a Landing Site - Standard Recommendations
If a gardener decides to start growing blackberries, when choosing a site for planting, he needs to keep in mind:
Choose a sunny and not windy place to land
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Land for planting is better to prepare in the fall
Site preparation can have two options:
It is better to dig up the site for planting in the fall, remove weeds, and eliminate pests and pathogens. If the land was fallow, then wheatgrass can be destroyed with the help of repeated disking (as the weeds grow 5 cm), or with the help of herbicides.
The pit for planting the plant should have an approximate size of 40x40x40. It should be prepared 1-3 weeks before planting, and preferably in the fall (when planting in the spring) or in the spring (when planting in the fall). For upright varieties, you can drive a peg into the center of the pit to support the bush.
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Time to plant seedlings
It is better to plant blackberries in the spring
The time for planting is selected depending on the location of the site, as well as the type of root system of the seedling:
- if the garden is located in the southern region, you can plant blackberries before winter
- if the garden is located in the middle or northern lane, it is better to postpone planting the plant until early spring
- if the plant has been grown in a container, it can be planted in spring, summer or autumn
However, most gardeners agree that the best time to plant a blackberry bush is still spring. So the plant will have a lot of time to adapt well to new conditions, take root, and prepare for wintering in a new place.
If the seedlings were purchased in the fall, this does not mean that they will have to be planted anyway. Plants can simply be dug in trenches (sprinkle the roots with earth or sawdust), stored in the basement, cellar - in this form they will winter well without trying to take root. And in early spring, you can land according to all the rules and at the best time.
Seedlings ready for planting
Before starting the procedure, the seedling must be examined, its root system shortened if it is too powerful. If the roots are dry, they should be placed in a root solution or in plain water for several hours before planting. The tops of the shoots also need to be cut - so that the plant rises 25 cm above the ground, the fruit branches are completely removed.
The roots need to be straightened, the plant should be placed in a hole and, holding it with one hand, cover the roots with earth. At the same time, the growth point, which is located at the base of the stem, was buried in the ground by no more than 2-3 cm. Otherwise, blackberry fruiting will shift by one season, as the plant will need to form new upstream buds.
After the bush is planted, the earth must be tamped down and watered abundantly. It is better to immediately pour 1-1.5 buckets of water under each bush, into pre-formed watering holes. The last important step in planting blackberries is mulching the soil, straw or sawdust, peat-dung compost or other similar materials are suitable for this (mulch layer height is 3-4 cm).
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Tape arrangement of bushes
There are several types of planting bushes of this plant:
- Bush - landing pits are dug at the corners of an imaginary square with sides of 2 m.
- Tape (suitable for large plantations) - several furrows (ribbons) are formed at a distance of 2 m from each other. Plants are planted in the furrows at a distance of 1-3 meters from each other (depending on the variety).
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Only careful care of the plant will allow you to get such a harvest.
Caring for this shrub consists of the following activities:
The last point is the most important, since not only the appearance and size of the plant, but also its yield will depend on the quality and professionalism of its implementation.
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Blackberries on trellises - wooden poles with wire stretched between them
In early spring, as soon as the soil freezes, you need to install trellises, on which the lashes of the plant will be tied. Without a trellis, the plant will grow erratically, crawl along the ground, look untidy, and the crop will quickly deteriorate. And at the same time, the blackberry quickly turns into impenetrable thickets.
Blackberry trellises can be of the following types:
Scheme for installing a trellis from poles and wire
plant on a trellis
If the gardener chose poles with wire as a trellis, then they must be installed on the sides of the blackberry planting - at the beginning and at the end. If the planting length is more than 10 m, then for every 10 linear meters an additional pole must be installed. They must be made of durable material (iron, concrete, wood), have a height of 2 meters and be securely attached to the ground.
A galvanized wire is stretched between the supports and firmly fixed, you can, in extreme cases, use a strong clothesline. The first level of the wire is at a distance of 50-75 cm from the ground, the second - at a height of 100-125 cm, and the third - at a level of 180 cm from the soil.
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The highest, that is, the third wire, is the place where the shoots of the second year will be tied up.. It is on these branches that the crop will be located this season. Young shoots that will not bear fruit do not need to be tied, it is enough to periodically guide them along the lower tiers of the trellis, and they will braid the wire themselves.
blackberry pruning
- Separate accommodation - the branches that bear fruit are directed in one direction, and those that do not bear fruit - in the other.
- Fan - fruiting lashes are attached to the trellis one at a time with a fan, and new ones are left loose in the center of the bush.
- Rope formation - the branches on which there will be a crop are tied to the trellis in any direction, and the young ones are left in the center of the bush.
Young shoots, as they grow during the season, are also sent to the free tier of the trellis. Those branches that have already yielded crops should be cut off near the ground at the end of the season.
A straight-growing blackberry will most likely not produce a crop in the planting year.
And in order to get a harvest next season, you need:
Thus, the bush will look neat and compact, at the same time, pruning will not affect the yield of blackberries.
And do not forget about the sanitary pruning of the bush in spring and autumn - all diseased, broken, dry, thickening, fruit-bearing, frost-bitten shoots are completely removed.
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Young seedlings should not be watered abundantly, but regularly during the first 1-2 months after planting. Also, watering will be necessary in the future if the weather is dry in summer and autumn. Bushes that are already bearing fruit need to be watered during the period of flowering and fruit formation - regularly 1 time in 7 days.
Young seedlings need frequent watering for the first couple of months after planting.
In the second and following years after planting, the first watering is carried out in the spring after the shelter has been removed from the bushes. The first watering should be plentiful - up to 5 buckets per bush. The same moisture-charging procedure is carried out in the fall, when the plant is preparing for wintering.
In addition to watering, the bushes need shading from direct sunlight, but only during the ripening period of the berries. Otherwise, black blackberries can get a sunburn, and their presentation, shelf life will deteriorate. For the purpose of shading, you can stretch a special or camouflage net over the plants.
Weeding, loosening, mulching
The first years between bushes or rows of blackberry bushes, green manure or row vegetables can be grown. Further, the ground near the bushes must be kept under black fallow.
Mulching with sawdust
If weeds appear near the plant, they must be promptly removed. You need to loosen the ground once a month from spring to autumn, the loosening depth is 10-12 cm. In the immediate vicinity of the bush, the loosening depth is higher - up to 6-8 cm.
If it is possible to mulch the land on the site with pebbles, gravel, straw, hay, sawdust, needles, fallen leaves or other improvised materials, then problems weeds and loosening will disappear automatically. And if you use compost for mulching, the plant will receive an additional source of nutrition, which is especially important during the flowering period.
top dressing
Potassium sulfate
It is advisable to apply fertilizers only at the beginning of the growing season.
- Nitrogen fertilizers, for example, urea - 20 g / 1 sq. m. They bring in every year.
- Potash fertilizers that do not contain chlorine, for example, potassium sulfate - 40 g / 1 sq. m. They bring in every year.
- Phosphates - 50 g / 1 sq. M., make 1 time in 3 years.
- Organics with a high nitrogen content - 4 kg / 1 sq. m. They make it every year, in which case phosphates are not needed at all.
In principle, given that fertilizers have already been applied to the planting pit, you can not feed the first year or two. When deciding whether a bush needs fertilizer, you can focus on its appearance, the growth rate of shoots and the abundance of fruiting.
Preparing for the winter
Blackberries, despite the fact that they have good frost resistance, still need shelter for the winter. Maybe warming for a plant is not a vital measure. But having wintered in comfortable conditions, the blackberry will surely thank the gardener for its rapid growth and abundant harvest next season.
Simple bush cover
To cover the bushes, they need to be laid on the surface of the soil. The question is how to lay the shoots, and at the same time not injure the plant, do not spend a lot of time untying the lashes from the trellis. There is such an option (if the supporting pillars are not cemented) - the shoots, together with the trellis, are laid flat on the ground, it is enough to carefully remove the supports.
The bush must be covered with peat, fallen leaves, straw, corn husks or other materials. When the snow falls and frosts begin, the pile is additionally insulated with snow.
In the spring, it is important to open the bush in the spring on time, that is, not to miss the moment of strong swelling of the buds. The trellis needs to be put in place, to make the next forming pruning.
How to cover a straight-growing blackberry
Straight-growing blackberry bushes are more difficult to cover, since their hard shoots practically do not fall. If possible, a shelter in the form of a greenhouse on a frame is installed above such bushes. Or they can be wrapped with any breathable material.
Straight bushes can be tied before warming for the winter
Before shelter, the bush is cut off, and the ground around it must be mulched with dry material - sawdust, peat. To prevent disease or pest damage in the next season, the bush and the soil under it must be sprayed with copper sulphate and actellik.
There is also an option how to cover upright blackberry bushes without strong pruning - starting from the last month of summer, you need to hang a load on the branches (plastic bottles filled with water). Under the weight of the load, the branches of the plant will gradually lean towards the ground, it will be easier to bend them down without breaking them. Covering the bush with polyethylene is allowed, since the blackberry is not prone to damping out during thaws and in spring.
reproduction
It is enough to plant a certain variety of blackberries once, and you don’t have to worry about propagating or buying other bushes of this variety. The purchase is simply not needed, because the reproduction of the plant will not be difficult even for a novice gardener.
Blackberries are propagated in several ways.
- Apical layering (creeping varieties)
- Horizontal layering (creeping varieties)
- Root offspring (straight varieties)
- Cuttings (straight varieties)
- Dividing the bush (straight-growing varieties)
- Less popular and effective methods are propagation by seeds, as well as air layering, cutting roots and cuttings harvested from lignified branches.
Reproduction of the creeping blackberry
In the spring, any shoot of the mother bush, which in a bent state reaches the ground, bend down and sprinkle its end with earth. When the buds that are underground begin to grow and new shoots appear from them, the daughter plant can be separated from the mother plant and transplanted.
Horizontal layers can be sprinkled with earth
You can also sprinkle not the top of the branch, but the branch along the entire length. In this case, several bushes will grow from one branch, which can be divided and transplanted.
Reproduction of bush or upright
This type of plant under the bush constantly has root offspring. They are great for propagating blackberries if they have already grown 10 cm or more. Transplanting is best done in late spring or early summer, as in this case, young seedlings will have enough time to move away from stress and take root before frost.
root cuttings
If a variety is planted that does not produce root offspring, the plant can be propagated by dividing the bush. In this case, you need to divide the blackberry in such a way that both parts are well developed and have a strong root system.
Particularly valuable blackberry varieties are recommended to be propagated by green cuttings:
- Harvesting time cuttings - June-July
- Place of workpiece cuttings - the upper third of the shoot
- cutting should be from a live bud, 1-2 leaves and part of the stem
The cut point that will sink into the ground must be powdered or treated with any root-forming preparation. Cuttings should be planted in cups or cassettes filled with a peat-sand mixture. If you put the cups in a mini-greenhouse and maintain 95% humidity in it, the cuttings will take root in 30 days.
Diseases and pests
It is known that the blackberry is resistant to negative external factors, but if it is weakened by improper agrotechnical care, it can quickly “catch” both diseases and pests.
raspberry beetle
- rust
- powdery mildew
- anthracnose
- septoria or white spot
- didimella or purple spotting
- botrytis or gray mold
- spider mite
- hairy raspberry mite
- kidney moth
- weevil
- raspberry beetle
- gall wasp
- aphid
- gall midge
- butterfly caterpillars
To prevent the development of diseases or insect damage, blackberries need to be processed 2-3 times per season, starting from the moment the first leaves open. Otherwise, you can lose up to 60% of the entire crop and infect other plants in the garden.
Treatment against diseases is carried out with Bordeaux liquid or a solution of colloidal sulfur. From pests blackberries will be protected by actellik, karbofos, fitoverm, akarin.
Storage and use of berries - preparation and timing
Frozen berries are an excellent component for making compote in winter
- fresh blackberry in the refrigerator at zero temperature - from 4 to 7 days. In this case, the berries should be placed on a napkin in a container in one layer. It is impossible to wash the berries and remove the cuttings.
- Whipped with sugar fresh blackberries in the refrigerator at zero temperature - up to 21 days. The taste and benefits of the fruit will be preserved in full.
- Washed and sorted blackberries can be frozen, dried, canned (compotes, jam, jams).
- Blackberries, if the harvest is plentiful and the presentation of the fruit is preserved, can be sold at the local market, acquaintances and neighbors in the area.
Plants that need to be transported over long distances are supposed to be carefully sorted. Remove all damaged or rotten berries, leave on healthy stalks, do not wash the berries. Transportation is carried out in dry containers, the layers of berries in one container should be as small as possible.
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Growing garden blackberries - a description from buying a seedling and planting it in open ground to caring for and harvesting from the Moscow region to Siberia (Photo & Video) + Reviews
Of course, blackberries are a very useful product, and as a fitness instructor, I know its useful qualities very well. I used to buy it, but my husband and I decided to plant it in the country, especially since in the summer we mostly even live there, since it’s hot in the city, so there is an opportunity to look. There are definitely no problems with its reproduction, everything takes root very well, but with care you need to be more careful for sure, you need to constantly monitor the condition of the bushes. But it’s worth it, your own blackberry is much tastier and healthier than the purchased one :)