Position – Plant your blackberry bush in full sun, if possible. They can tolerate partial shade if full sun isn’t an option. Plant them against a trellis or fence to allow them to creep as they grow.
Size – An erect stem reaches a height of about 2 metres before becoming a rambler.
Soil Type – Use well-drained, fertile, slightly acidic soil with a pH 5.6 and 7.0.
Dig a 50cm x 50cm deep hole and add a bag of compost or acid compost. Mix the berry mix and volcanic rock dust into the top section of this soil. Make a little hole and plant, ensuring you don’t add the soil higher than where the soil is in the bag. Then add the pine bark mulch on top, keeping it away from the plant’s stem. Place the plant directly into the soil mixture and cover it with pine bark mulch.
The volcanic rock dust at Just Berry Plants contains organic minerals and trace elements to boost the health of your soil and increases the micro-organisms that are essential for healthy ground.
Avoid planting this bush in soil that was previously used for tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, or eggplant.
Watering – Keep your blackberry roots moist, and increase your watering slightly in the fruiting season. Be careful not to water the foliage, though. Only water the soil. Give it a good soaking every 2 to 3 days if there’s been no rain in summer. During the winter, water it lightly twice a week.
Mulch –To maintain the soil acidity, apply good organic mulch like pine -bark around the plant every few months. Keep the mulch about 20 centimetres away from the stems to prevent them from rotting.
Fertilising – Fertilise your plant with one teaspoon of our slow-release berry fertiliser every 4-5 months.
Pruning – Cut back dead or diseased canes in winter so that the plant can focus its resources on healthy, productive limbs. Like most other bramble fruits, blackberries bear best on old wood, which stems in their second or third year. If you cut them back heavily in spring, the growth is fresh and considered new wood, limiting your fruit supply.
Harvesting – Pretty pink flowers in early summer are followed by fruit ready to harvest from late summer into autumn. The berries are ready to be picked when they are fully black, juicy, and slightly soft. They should pull away from the plant easily without having to be tugged.
