New to Blackberries

[Ashdoes]

I got the first three today, the black satin. I'll be preparing the sight on Monday I think. I've noticed, while watering the plants in the run, that I need to block the area I want to water. So I'll do a pretty brick border, maybe three feet wide, and mix in a lot of bagged compost. I really wish my compost was ready, but it's not so I'll buy some. I also have to do an extra heavy cover of mulch, or the ground dries out too fast.
The second variety should get here Monday or Tuesday, and with a rest to acclimate they should all be ready to put in the ground next Saturday.
I've been reading a lot about the blackberry bushes and I'm wondering if I can take a natural approach to them? Do I have to trim them back every year? I realize the canes grow better if you're pruning each year, but to get better coverage of the run can I just leave them? It's not like people go out and trim wild bushes and they grow just fine. Just an idea.

 

[math ace]

NEW to Blackberries.... First Tip.... They need acidic soil. Get a PH test done before planting them.

Are your blackberries the thornless variety? I ask this because mine are not. The only chicken that was willing to deal with the thorns ended up with bumblefoot. It could of just been a coincidence, but it is something to think about since you are planting them right beside the coop.

 

[WillsC]

I love your idea of putting 'em by the pen for shade. Black berries produce every other year it seems and the new canes that come up will produce next year. I like to put ashes by the plants they like the acidic soil.

Nancy,

Not to nitpick but ashes are alkaline you are right that the bushes like acid soil. I grow about 100 feet of blackberries here in Florida and will tell you they love mulch which helps to keep the soil cool and moist. Keep the weeds down and fertilize in the spring and they are pretty fool proof plants.

 

[Ashdoes]

After a lot of research I'll mostly just be mixing sphagnum peet moss and some compost into our soil here.
I actually had to change my plan a little. My back is a little more messed up then I thought, so I'll be mixing up the dirt and putting these little plants in bigger pots for the winter. Then when my husband gets home in March he'll help me prepare the new site and plant the bushes.
Thank you for all the tips. Researching helps, but first hand experience is a lot more helpful.

 

[Going Bhonkers]

Try to get the thornless ones if you can, the thorns on blackberry bushes will make your hands cry - they even make the thorns on roses look appealing, in comparison. Even the leaves have thorns on them!

 

[wyoDreamer]

I miss the wild blackberries from northern Wisconsin.
Can I dig some up to transplant to my yard in the spring? I will be going back and visit the folks at that time.

 

[Ashdoes]

I miss the wild blackberries from northern Wisconsin. 
Can I dig some up to transplant to my yard in the spring?  I will be going back and visit the folks at that time.

Actually yes you can. Make sure your soil is prepped and ready for them.
Are you going to transplant full bushes?

 

[wyoDreamer]

Actually yes you can. Make sure your soil is prepped and ready for them.
Are you going to transplant full bushes?

Probably will clip the tops off. I will have to start on a full bush, as that will be the only why I will know what I am digging up. Some of the canes are over 8 feet long, so they will have to be cut back to a couple of feet for transport.

 

[pinkchick]

Ohhhhh how I wish I could transport the wild, prolific and ever invasive blackberries of Pacific Northwest to you!!!!!! I'd happily give them all!

They will come back every year and the roots spread under the soil and send out new canes every so many inches or sometimes even further apart. They will climb anything they can even though they do not need the support and they can reach heights you wouldn't believe given the right circumstances and environment.. Over here a person will see many trees being taken over by them in the dense blackberry jungles. I've lost a few chickens and chicks in the jungle.
The chickens will eat the lower leaves they can reach. No worries.......that won't slow the plants down one bit. The only way to slow BB's down is to cut the cane.......O but once again never fear.....they will make a come back from being whacked as well. Repeated pruning of a cane and not allowing it to produce new leaves is a great way to actually affect the cane and kill it. Goats are extremely effective at repeatative pruning.

My thornless BB's are in containers and during very cold and freezing weather I take care to not let the roots or the contanier freeze. I set the big 5 gallon planters in half wine barrels and insulate with straw inbetween the pot and barrel and also the base of the canes and I move under cover, either to the green house, or my covered front porch where the straw cannot get wet or yucky. I found out the hard way about the roots freezing and had to start over.....since I have been moving them under cover and insulating they have overwintered well in a container. Planted in the ground and well established they should do just fine.
Take care to pick up the cane and all debris after clippings....blackberries can start from a piece of the cane sitting on top of the soil.

LOL! I've never known a world without blackberries.

Hubby and I are looking into moving to another state, either Montana or Colorado. Montana was where we were initially thinking, but Colorado has won the hubbies heart. I've been wondering how my thornless berries will do in the high desert.

 

[Ashdoes]

Wow. Do you think my thornless bushes will go nuts like that and invade everything? I really just want a wall of bushes to provide shade for the chickens and of course lots of berries. I do not however want the run taken over by the bushes. Do you think I should plant them at the other end of the yard? If we had the back acreage fenced I'd plant them back there, but it's just not ready yet. Any tips?