You ’ve found the perfect blackberries ( Rubus fruticosus ) for yourlocationin USDA plant life hardiness zone 4 through 9 . Now it ’s up to you to keep them vigorous and rich as long as possible – and with the correct maintenance , that could be for 30 or more twelvemonth . Our constitutional care pourboire will help you keep your grime and harvests at their healthy , chemical - free well !
A Good Start
Whether you ’re planting an entire blackberry bush patch or one bush in acontainer , success start with the soil . More than anything else , blackberries take good drainage .
In the garden , that means sandy or sandy loam stain . If your soil is heavy , industrial plant in provoke beds . Working 3 to 4 inch of organic compost into the soil before planting meliorate a advance bed ’s drain and loose grunge ’s water retention .
turn a container blackberry bush in equal part of organic potting mix and constituent compost . Be indisputable its pot has several drain jam .
Fertilizing
inseminate in - ground blackberries when you see fresh development emerging , usually three to four weeks afterplanting . Scatter 3 cups ( .7 liters ) of organic , granular 4 - 3 - 4 fertilizer for acid - loving plants over every 10 square feet of soil . Water well when you ’re done .
After the first acquire season , fertilize as soon as the grime warming in saltation and once more within the next six weeks to two months .
For container blackberry bush , apply a liquid constitutive fertilizer with equal N - phosphorus - K numbers at the recording label ’s recommended rate . Feed when new increase appears and again when it finishes flowering .
Water
Between spring florescence and the end of harvest home , most blackberry bush take from 1 to 2 inches of water supply per week . Two watering sessions of 30 to 60 minute via drip system are ideal . No matter how you irrigate , keep the bush dry or they may attract fungal disease .
Check container blackberries daily ; water if the top 1 inch of stain feels dry . They could need two drink a day in hot , dry weather .
Mulch
keep up 3 - in level of constitutional mulch around your Berry has several benefits . It :
Expert gardener ’s point : As loony toons - loving plant , blackberry perform unspoilt with an acidic soil pH between 6.0 and 6.5 . Pine bark and pine stalk mulch tone ending acid as they decompose .
Pest Management
Swollen areas ( galls ) on the lower 12 inches of your blackberry cane mean cane borers have burrowed in to fee . To eliminate them , issue and burn the affected cane .
Aphid colony drain sap from the bushes and cover them with sticky honeydew waste . Spray infested plant with constitutional insecticidal soap sprayed until they drip . ingeminate every three days as needed .
