🫐 Blackberry Planting Instructions

 

Blackberries are vigorous, easy-to-grow plants that produce abundant crops of delicious fruit year after year. Perfect for gardens, allotments, and fruit-growing areas, they are ideal for eating fresh, freezing, jams, and desserts.

 

🌱 Planting Position

Choose a sunny or partially shaded site with fertile, moisture-retentive, well-drained soil. Blackberries are hardy plants and will thrive in most garden soils.

 

📏 Planting Distance

  • Plants: 2–3m (6–10ft) apart
  • Rows: 2.5–3m (8–10ft) apart

 

Allow plenty of space for growth and provide support such as wires, fencing, or trellises where required.

 

🌳 Planting

  1. Soak bare-root plants in water for 30 minutes before planting.
  2. Dig a hole large enough to spread the roots comfortably.
  3. Plant at the same depth as previously grown in the nursery.
  4. Firm the soil gently around the roots.
  5. Water thoroughly after planting.
  6. Tie canes loosely to support wires if necessary.

 

💧 Watering

Water regularly during dry periods, particularly during the first year and while fruit is developing. Consistent moisture will help produce larger, juicier berries.

 

🌿 Feeding & Care

Apply a balanced fertiliser in spring and mulch annually with well-rotted compost or manure. Keep the base of the plant free from weeds to reduce competition for nutrients and water.

 

🫐 Harvesting

Blackberries are typically ready to harvest from late summer into early autumn. Pick fruit when fully black, plump, and easily removed from the plant.

 

🌟 Top Tip

 

After harvesting, remove the old fruited canes at ground level and tie in the new season’s growth, which will produce next year’s crop.

 

English’s Fruit Nursery Tip

 

Blackberries are one of the most productive soft fruits and can provide generous harvests for many years with minimal maintenance.