Finally, you will learn how to properly grow and care for blackberries.

Care and cultivation of blackberries is not much different from other types of berries. Technologies and methods of cultivation are usually based on the needs and requirements of blackberries.

Preparing the soil for planting blackberries

As with any plant, for blackberries, before planting, you must prepare the soil. Since blackberries have few differences from raspberries, the technology and agricultural practices used are almost the same in both species. First, you need to carefully prepare the soil for planting. The soil must provide enough nutrients so that blackberry seedlings can take root on it, produce a large amount of harvest and live long enough, at least 10 years in one area.

Blackberries grow very well in almost any location, even where drainage is difficult. But if the soil on the site is sandy or poor, it needs to be improved with the help of organic fertilizers. It is worth increasing the ability to retain water and increase fertility.

There are also hybrid types of blackberries; these types are picky about the soil and require fertile soil, as well as good drainage. The ideal place for planting such species would be medium-type loam, with a depth of 40 cm or more. Regarding the previous crops, it is better to choose a place for the germination of vegetables (original nightshade crops, because they are susceptible to similar diseases).

The soil for blackberries needs preliminary preparation. 4 weeks before planting berry seedlings, it is necessary to remove old crops from the site (in our case, vegetables) and destroy the plants — weeds.

But the soil in the place planned for blackberries may turn out to be poor. In this case, it is worth using peat, manure, or compost to strengthen the soil under digging. It is necessary to apply a layer of 7 centimeters in thickness over the entire area of the rows of the site. Also, don’t forget about mineral fertilizers. On the same area, you need to pour 30 grams of “potassium salt” and 60 grams of “superphosphate.”

Acidic soils for blackberries also need to be treated. Using lime, you need to add 400 grams per square meter. And also, it is better to dig to a depth of 25 centimeters, while removing the roots of plants - weeds.

How to plant and grow blackberries

So how to plant and grow this crop correctly? How you plant your blackberries will affect the quality of their growth in the future. As a rule, planting is done in small holes 40 by 40, or furrows with the same parameters. It is necessary to cover the roots of the seedling with soil after planting and water it abundantly, without releasing the root buds to the surface.

The main thing to remember is that the neck of the roots must be 3 centimeters deeper than the surface of the soil itself. If you skip this moment, then you can allow the formation of roots on the surface, which, of course, will freeze during the first cold weather.

After planting is completed, you will need to use pruning shears to trim the blackberry seedling to one bud, at a height of 25 centimeters above the surface. Next, start mulching the blackberries. Mulching is done with peat or compost 4 centimeters around the seedling. The main thing is to leave the trunk and branches clean. Don’t forget about watering the plant, especially during droughts and hot weather.

At the moment, there are three very popular ways of growing blackberry plants: weaving, rope and fan.

Fan growing method — well suited for weak hybrid blackberry species. The method is quite simple, it can be mastered quickly enough and brought to full automation.

After the blackberry branches grow to 30 centimeters, you will need to slightly tilt them in any direction and tie them to some kind of trellis. Next year, when the blackberry branches grow to a similar length, you need to bend them in the same way and tie them, but only in the opposite direction. What to do with last year's branches? Harvest the entire crop from them and cut them down to the very base. Next year you need to repeat this operation again, with garter and trimming.

The fan method, as you can already understand, makes it possible to receive berries on one side of the plant, and growing branches on which fruits will soon appear on the other.

Cultivation method “weaving” — well suited for powerful blackberry varieties. This method is more complex than the “fan” method, but it will allow you to get more yield from one bush.

Weaving in one direction will take less effort from you, but you will simply lose a large amount of space, because the branches will grow in one direction. At the same time, blackberries will produce a harvest the very next year after planting. Young branches go in the other direction and in a new direction.

After planting, when summer arrives, new branches will begin to appear. So they will need to be attached to the lower level of the wire when weaving.

After a year, you will already begin to see young fruits and flowers on the blackberries. At the same time, young branches will again appear at the bottom of the plant, which will need to be redirected upward, through the main trunk of the bush. Once you get the berries, start unweaving and trimming the aged blackberry branches. And in mid-spring, you will need to remove the frostbitten tops of the bush.

There are also varieties of blackberries that are called “creeping” and their branches can branch up to 30 centimeters; pruning of these branches is mandatory.

Blackberry varieties that grow rather weakly require maintaining a distance of 2 meters from the neighboring bush using the “fan” method; the distance when “weaving” is 3 meters.

Blackberries, which have an average growth capacity, oblige you to maintain a distance of 3 meters when using the “fan” method, and when using “weaving” — about 4 meters.
The strongest varieties of blackberries require a distance of about 4 meters for “fan” and 5 meters for “weaving”.

Rules for caring for blackberries

The main rule of caring for blackberries is the correct condition of the soil. Blackberries need the soil to always be weeded, loosened, mulched, watered and fertilized. Secondly, you need to make sure that the blackberry bushes are always pruned and keep the correct shape.

To make caring for blackberries easier, you need to make some kind of support for the plant. As a rule, a 2-meter long trellis with small wires serves as a support.