Backyard
Berry Plants
Specializing in Organically Grown Blueberry, Blackberry, and Red Raspberry Plants
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are some questions that I have fielded over phone, at the farmer's market, and here at the farm and nursery. It would be great to read through them, for this is where some of the most useful information can be found....
Q: When is the best time to plant berry plants?
A: The short answer is right after you get them.
With our potted berry plants, they can be planted anytime of the
year, so long as you can work the soil. The spring
planting/fall planting protocols have more to do with bare-root
plants than anything else. Remember, potted plants have an
intact, fully functional root system, ready to give full support to
the above ground stem and shoots. They undergo minimal
transplant shock for this reason, and so can be planted anytime,
even when dormant. For summer and fall planting, just make
sure not to forget your newly placed berry plant if you have a dry
spell.
Q: What is my hardiness zone?
A: Your hardiness zone is determined by average low temperatures in your area. Areas of the country that share similar average low temps are in a similar hardiness zone. You can go to this USDA hardiness zone map to see just what your new, updated hardiness zone is.
Q: Is there anything that bothers
blueberry plants, like pests or diseases?
A: Yes, there is always something out there waiting to take a knock
at your plants. But, for the backyard berry producer, these
are rarely a problem. Insect pests and diseases are usually
found in areas where large acres of blueberries have been planted,
as these are great places for population explosions of pests.
Keeping your plant cultivars and growing habitat diverse are the
best insurance against high levels of pests and disease. It
works very well on our farm.
Q: Will the birds eat all my berries?
A: They will nail your blueberries if they are not netted, and they
will go after the black raspberries as well (these are the first
berries to ripen). Blackberries on our farm are only mildly
hit, and the red raspberries show no bird predation at all.
Robins are the worst, as they will form gangs and ruin your plants.
Catbirds and Brown Thrashers will get some no matter what you do, as
they are a determined intelligence (all they have to do during the
day is figure out how to get IN there!). My father-in-law
noted that, once the blueberries started producing, he began to see
bird species that he had not seen since he was a boy.
Q: Where can I get bird netting to keep birds off
my berries?
A: Garden centers, home improvement stores,
nurseries, and online gardening supply stores carry them.
I usually use a 14' wide by 100' long net for our rows. Nets
come in various sizes, but try to get one that will cover your bush
to the ground. The net will be more effective against birds if
you can support it so that the net is not resting on the bush:
birds have no problem with landing on a netted branch and pecking at
a berry through the net. Keep an eye on our site, and I will
try to get some images of what a correctly netted bush looks like.
Q: Do certain trees bother berry plants?
A: The black walnut will kill blueberry plants, but will not bother
blackberry or raspberry plants (the brambles). Shade can be
good in hot climates (zones 5-8), but make sure it is afternoon
shade for raspberries (blueberries do fine with either). As
for blackberries, full sun=full sweetness. Even the slightest
bit of shade seems to make them sour.
(BACK
TO TOP)
Q: How often should I water my berry
plants?
A: That depends. Established plants (at least 2 years in the
ground) should do fine with seasonal precipitation, but plan on
irrigating during dry spells. This will insure proper bud set
for next years fruits. Less consistent watering won't kill
them, but your overall yield potential may diminish. As for
new plants, water every week, unless you have a good soaker (a 1"
rain) during that week. Hot, dry weather means watering twice
a week, even with a good mulch. Watch the plants.
Brambles will wilt at the tip if they need water, as will the new
growth on blueberries. Severe water stress on blueberries
(either too much or too little water) shows up as browning, dying
tissue on leaf margins. In heavier soils you can overwater, so make sure you
plant them in a well drained spot (or raised up about 8" if the
ground is poorly drainig).
Q: When will I see blueberries on my
plants?
A: Most of our cultivars should have some fruit on them the
year after you plant them, with each year seeing more berries.
Blueberry plants' peak yields occur at ages 8-12 years, then drop a bit
to stabilize over the following years. Most cultivars are very
precocious, making more berries each year until they hit their
stride. The plants you get from us are 2 years old (from
cutting) and should produce some fruit the following year.
In 6 more years they will hit their maximum production, given
adequate care. There is no need to remove berries while the
plant is young, especially if you are following our planting/growing
guides. You can see the flower buds easily on a blueberry, as
they are the buds that are very prominent (the vegetative or leaf
buds are small and recessed).
Q: When can I expect to see raspberries?
A: The fall bearing raspberries, also called everbearing, should
produce some fruit the year you plant them. This fruit will
appear on the new growing cane. Expect more the following
years, as the plant builds up its root system and crown. With
the fall red raspberries, I have had a full-cropping row the year
after planting (2 ft spacing used). I usually cut these down
to the ground in December, ensuring quality harvests the following
July-October. Purple, summer red, and black raspberries (as
well as blackberries) will start to flower and fruit the year after
you plant them. On these brambles, only cut out the canes that
have finished fruiting, and any spindly new canes.
BACK TO TOP
Q: Can I use compost and rotted manure
around my berries?
A: These amendments are fine for brambles, but they really do not
need that much nitrogen, so opt for compost over manure. Never
use these on blueberries, as these materials tend to raise and
balance pH (usually a good thing), thus eliminating the acidic pH
that blueberries require to thrive.
Q: When should I prune my blueberry?
A: Generally, it should need no pruning for about 3-4 years after
you plant it. Let it grow and build its root system, becoming
strong so that it can better regenerate after pruning. The
exceptions to this are for broken branches, dead tips, and spindly
or horizontal growth near the base.
Q: How often should I fertilize my
blueberry?
A: We do it once in late March (zone 5), then again in late May or
early June for our production bushes. We also foliar feed
every other week after the weather has warmed until early June.
It is unwise to fertilize after July, especially with organic
fertilizers, as they tend to prevent the plant from hardening-off
(get ready for winter) properly, which usually results in 2-3 inches
dieback on every branch tip. Foliar kelp is OK once or twice
after fruit is picked, and I usually do this at a half-rate
application.
(BACK TO TOP)
Q: Why are my blueberries leaves turning
red?
A: They do this for different reasons. They turn red in the
fall, of course (and orange/yellow), and that is expected. If it is
spring or summer and this is happening, your pH could be too high
and/or they are not getting enough nitrogen. I usually put a
couple full shovels of peat moss around each plant in the spring,
along with its annual spring fertilizer treatment, and I have never
had this problem in my production bushes. I am more likely to
see it in potted nursery plants, as pH and nitrogen can rapidly
change given increased watering (leaching nitrogen and raising pH)
and temperatures (increased plant growth with not enough nitrogen).
Q: Why is the new growth on my blueberry plant pale
yellow?
A: It needs iron, and may not have an acidic enough pH.
Usually these two go hand-in-hand, as iron becomes more available to
blueberry roots as the pH decreases to 4.5-5.0. First check
soil pH, for if it is too high (above 5.5) no amount of iron
addition is going to help. If it is acidic enough, then add an
iron fortified fertilizer amendment, or drench with a couple gallons
of STRONG stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) tea. This herb is
LOADED with iron, in a very available form for plants and people.
Again, following the planting guides provided with your order and on
our website should steer you clear of these types of issues.
(BACK TO
TOP)
Q: Keith, what is your favorite variety and
cultivar of berry?
A: This is a question I often get, and it depends on
the day to how I answer it. Lucky me, I usually say, because I
get to grow all the different kinds, plus some rare ones. Most
of the berry plants we grow have at least one attribute I feel sets
them apart, and makes it worthwhile to grow. Of course, I do
get some customers at market who don't buy the "All my children are
beautiful and special" line. So today, here it is: my
favorite lowbush is Friendship, my favorite highbush is
Blue Moon, Royalty and Autumn Britten top my raspberry list, and
Triple Crown has consistently impressed me. Favorites list
subject to change. Don't tell the other cultivars...
Q: Which kind of berry plant that you sell would
you say is the most productive per plant?
A: Some customers want production, and any berry will
do. For that, I have a simple answer: Triple Crown
blackberry. This plant has by far outstripped every other
plant on our farm in per plant fruit production, save the
watermelons (remember our springs usually do in our tree fruits, so
I don't count them as producers on our farm). We have had up
to 22# from one plant, and I have seen results even higher in other,
more amenable growing areas.
Q: For a first time berry grower, which of the
berry plants that you sell would be good to start with, meaning less
work and more fruit?
A: Of all the plants I sell, the Fall Red Raspberries
are great for first time berry growers. They are very easy to
plant, will usually produce a light crop of berries the year you
plant them (which is encouraging), and they have a simple
maintenance: cut them to the ground before spring. Late
frosts do not affect Fall Red Raspberry fruit production, as they
haven't produced any flowers yet (that happens in late June).
We have never had any bird predation on our Fall Raspberries,
either, so there is no need to net them (like the blueberries).
Removal of canes in early winter also reduces the chance for insect
pests and diseases to pop-up next season, as most of these n'er
do'wells overwinter on the canes. This will help your patch to
stay healthy for many, many years (we have one that is going on 10
years with no sign of any disease).
(BACK
TO TOP)
Q: Some of your plants are heirlooms. What
does that mean?
A: An heirloom is a plant cultivar or variety that
has been maintained for at least 50 years. There are not many
heirloom berry plants available, as the older cultivars are replaced
by newer
ones. I am working with a Michigan propagator to acquire plant
material form the ARS USDA germplasm bank of old blueberry
cultivars. Many of these old cultivars are used in breeding
new ones. Running their tissue through a virus indexing
process will provide virus free stock. I hope to be offering
these old time cultivars in the near future.
Observations From the Farm
Blueberry plants like very acidic soil conditions.
Just planting them in your native soil will often provide you with
poor results.
Our native soils here are heavy clay, which is too
thick for the expansion of blueberry roots. We also
have a soil pH in the range of 6.2-6.7, which is too high for
blueberries to thrive. They won't die, but will linger on,
growing with an almost stunted look, and not flowering. For best
results, please follow the planting guide directions on our
website.
Lowbush blueberries seem to tolerate a wider pH range
here at our farm, and are also more scrappy, doing well in the
more rocky soils we find on some of our hillsides. I still
get better growth and production from them when I use the
planting methods described on our website.
Waiting until the soil has warmed to plant raspberries helps
them to establish strongly the first year, with very little
stress. I dig our starts, pot them, and grow them out
until June. When I plant them into the ground, they seem
to literally explode with growth, and the fall bearers usually
put on quite a nice supply of large, sweet berries.
I have
planted potted brambles as late as October, and have had 100%
overwintering survival.
More on the way.