Use and Care Manual

Blackberry Planting Instructions

Selecting a Planting Site

To get the most out of your blackberry planting, choose your site carefully. Blackberries prefer full sunlight and

grow best in well-drained, sandy loam soils rich in organic matter. Avoid low areas that remain wet late into the

spring, but select a site with access to a water supply. Irrigation is important for good plant growth during dry

periods and can improve fruit size and yield. Destroy all wild raspberry and blackberry plants within a distance of

600 feet of your planting site if possible, to reduce the possibility that virus diseases might be spread to your

planting.

The Blackberry Plant

The crowns and roots of blackberry plants are perennial, but individual canes live two years. Each spring, the

plants produce canes (suckers) from buds on the crown and on underground lateral stems It’s easy to tell first-

year canes from second-year canes. First-year canes have green stems, while second-year canes have a thin,

brown bark covering them.

Planting and Management Systems

Plant blackberries early in the spring after the danger of severe frost is past (late April to mid-May) or late fall

while the soil is still warm. Do not allow plant roots to dry out before or during planting. Plants should be set at

the same depth or slightly deeper than they were in the pot. Firm the soil around the roots and water the plants.

Blckberry plants are typically grown in a hedgerow. Crowns should be planted about 2 feet apart in rows that are

8 to 12 feet apart. The plants will soon send up suckers from the roots and crowns to form a hedge, which

should be maintained at 12 to 18 inches wide at the base. Individual plants can be grown as a large shrub

following the same annual cane pruning used for hedgerow planting.

Blackberries are best grown with some sort of a trellis. This will improve fruit quality, make harvesting easier,

and reduce disease problems. Trellises also make pruning simpler by encouraging new cane growth in the

middle of the row, rather than just along the outside edges. For plants grown in a hedgerow, the “T” or “V” trellis

systems are recommended.

For the T trellis, sturdy posts should be set in the

row with 3½-foot-long cross arms affixed at a

height of 3½ to 4½ feet. The posts should be set

at least two feet deep in the ground and

anchored at each end of the row. Secure heavy-

gauge wire along the length of the row on each

side of the cross arms (Figure 1).

Figure 1. "T" Trellis

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Blackberry Planting Instructions Selecting a Planting Site To get the most out of your blackberry planting, choose your site carefully. Blackberries prefer full sunlight and grow best in well-drained, sandy loam soils rich in organic matter. Avoid low areas that remain wet late into the spring, but select a site with access to a water supply. Irrigation is important for good plant growth during dry periods and can improve fruit size and yield.
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For the V trellis, two posts should be set at each end of the row at about a 30-degree angle so that they are 3½ feet apart at a height of 3½ feet. Run the wire from each post at 3½ feet (Figure 2). After pruning, tie the fruiting canes to the wires on each side. Figure 2. "V" Trellis Care and Fertilization Keep the planting free from weeds with shallow cultivation and hand pulling as necessary. Make sure the plants receive one to two inches of water a week for best growth.