We recommend 8 feet in the row and 6 feet between rows or 3 feet wider than the equipment.

We recommend any time from the last freeze in the spring to about two weeks before the first freeze in the fall.

On a mature plant, you will get five canes that will grow up to 40 feet long each. The support is needed so you can keep the fruit at a height that makes picking easy. Generally, a grape-type trellis is best with 12 gage wire at three, four, five, and six feet. Tie the primary canes along the bottom wire using binder twine or the new berry clips sold. The plastic clips can easily be reused and last several seasons. With the primary along the bottom, the laterals should grow up towards the sun. Arrange them so they get as much sun as possible, tying them the same as the primaries. When the laterals get to the top, cut about two inches off the tip. New canes growing for next year's crop should be attached the same way but on the opposite side of the wires so it will be easy to remove the dead canes after they have fruited. If you want a DIY project, check out this article on making a Balcony Garden!

Generally the fruit will be one to one and a half inch long. Letting the fruit fully ripen will greatly add to the length.

If allowed to fully ripen, it is very sweet. According to a winery, the sugar was 11% compared to about 6% for wild blackberries. If it is “picked’ instead of letting it fall into your hand, it will not be sweet and will pucker your mouth like a lemon.

This depends on your taste preferences but generally, since it is sweet, the taste is pleasing to most people.

Our winters in Indiana get down to as low as 10 below Fahrenheit and as high as 105 in summers… its pretty extreme. We have not done anything to protect the plants and they have survived for over 35 years. In colder areas with temperatures below minus 20, it is necessary to provide some protection. Snow is the first choice, then a high tunnel or 6 mil white or clear plastic temporary greenhouse is all that is needed and it will extend the growing season also.

We have never pruned the plants but rather we let the canes grow to full length. Tipping the primaries at any length will cause the laterals to grow longer but total plant and fruit production should be the same. After the plant has fruited, the two-year-old canes will die and need to be removed back to the ground to get rid of clutter and let more sunshine get to the new canes. This can be done two months or more after fruiting ends but generally, there are fewer errors in cutting in the spring. The plant recovers nitrogen from the dying canes and stores it to use in the spring to get the plant started growing again.

We recommend any time from the last freeze in the spring to about two weeks before the first freeze in the fall.

We actually don’t know! We have plants over 30 years old still producing. Generally at about 15 years old the production declines but we don’t know if this was from age or shortage of fertilizer as they had never been fertilized after the year of planting. Two customers have reported their plants are over 40 years old.

Generally, a PH of 5 to 6.5 is best.

Sandy loam is best for all brambles as the loam retains moisture and fertilizers while the sand lets excess water escape. Other soils work find as long as you provide good drainage. In our experience, the better the soil the faster the plant grows and the more it produces.

An even number fertilizer such as 10-10-10 or 12-12-12 is recommended. We highly recommend fish-based fertilizers since they are high in trace minerals and enzymes. For our organic customers, we recommend using either Speedy-Gro 100% Kelp or Neptune’s Harvest Fish and Fish/Seaweed. With either, a weekly application as a foliar spray yielded 2-3 gallons of fruit in the second summer. We also recommend Doyle’s Organic Blackberry Fertilizer 4-4-4 with nitrogen at planting and three weeks after flowering starts.

Yes, you can but the first rule in using compost or manure is that if you can still tell where it came from it's not ready. Second, it's best to mix with the soil to avoid any hot spots or excesses. Finally, no compost or manure is balanced so it's important to get the soil tested for each crop so you can balance the fertilizers and minerals.

We recommend any time from the last freeze in the spring to about two weeks before the first freeze in the fall.

Check our article on fertilization!

Yes, there are no problems having these in the same or adjoining rows.

The further the better especially raspberries. Six hundred feet is the recommended minimum. The reason is to avoid transmission of virus or disease and raspberries are very susceptible and become incubators. If you can keep the other brambles healthy then there is no real problem. Cross-pollination with blackberries is possible but the effects may be good as well as bad.

The plants want all the sun they can get in the spring but 6 hours is the minimum. Shade may reduce production. During July and August the direct sun dehydrates the berry slightly so we recommend using 40% shade cloth or a rotating shift trellis If you have more blackberry questions about sunlight, check out our article on sunlight!

Just keep in mind that you will need good drainage, everything else is secondary. If your soil is poor then digging a 12-15 inch deep hole in the loose soil and mixing in compost, manure, and/or potting soil and even sand will get good soil for growing brambles. Add a balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10 by spreading 3-4 ounces in an area of about 12 inches around the plant at the time of planting and again after harvest. The use of a foliar spray on a weekly basis is also recommended.

Any plant will benefit from steady and regular watering. A drip irrigation system is the best since it will not waste a lot of water and is an easy way to fertilize the roots. The plants need about an inch of water which is a little over a one-half gallon per week. If you use plastic then you would only need a quart per plant per week. Double this when berries are produced.

We recommend 8 feet in the row and 6 feet between rows or 3 feet wider than the equipment.

Mulching reduces watering frequency and aids in the control of weeds. Good mulch includes pine straw, wood chips, and seed-free grain mulches such as wheat or rye. We prefer and recommend using 10-mill plastic in all gardens.

Yes, we have 10-mill plastic on all plants. Plastic provides moisture due to condensation on the bottom side, keeps weeds down, and raises the heat of the soil. This weight of plastic will last for many years and in the long run, is less expensive than thinner plastic that has to be replaced every few years. We recommend covering the entire garden with plastic and then cutting small holes for the crops to be grown. This was a process that Thomas E Doyle developed in the late 1950s and he sold the plastic until his mid 90’s. It is now available from Susan Pletcher, 66786 County Road 17, Goshen, Indiana 46526, 574-831-2329.

Yes, tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant, and peppers are susceptible to the same root diseases as blackberries. These diseases can remain in the soil for up to three years after the last planting. However, if your plants are all healthy and fully producing, then most likely the disease is not present and you can safely plant close by with no problems. Just keep an eye on everything.

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