Growing Brambles in Kentucky

• Things to consider before you commit • Growing them • Varieties

Chris Smigell, John Strang University of Kentucky Department of Horticulture Consider….

• Am I willing to use pesticides? –Fungicides occasionally required –Insecticides occasionally required –Herbicides usually required SWD Fruit Fly (Spotted-winged Drosophila)

• Imported from Asia • Fist found in KY in 2012 • Cuts into fruit to lay eggs • Start to be trapped Mid June Site Selection Considerations • Previous Crops –herbicide carryover –Orchard/Wooded area – root diseases • Water source • Wildlife • Perennial weed problems • Spray drift –schools, subdivisions, farms Site Selection Considerations • Slope – less than 10 degrees That’s “fuh”. • East to North facing • Soil Drainage • Soil Depth • Soil pH - 6-7 • Soil Fertility Elevation

Higher elevation essential – Less disease – Less freeze injury – Less frost injury

Frost Pocket Improving Soil Drainage

• Raised beds • Drain tiles • Increase organic matter • Sub-soiling Subsoiling • when soil is dry & it shatters – August • 2-3’ deep • At least below the depth of compaction

Photos courtesy: Edwin Ritchey • Beds 8” high or more

Laurel Fork Soil Fertility & pH • Native trees large and vigorous • Weeds growing well on site • Indicator plants

Broom sedge – Sorel Water Source

Filter, lines, pump…..~$600

City water, garden hose are OK for 200 or so plants Trickle Irrigation Essential

• Fruit plants need 1 inch of water per week

• 1 inch X 1 acre X 1 week = 9,000 gallons Purchasing Plants

Purchase from reputable nurseries that do virus testing

Plants come as rooted cuttings Make your own • Cane tips that touched ground and rooted • Cut close to ground, dig up root ball Planting • If planting is delayed – Store at 35° F…..not with fruit! – Heel in • Keep roots moist • Early spring planting allows better growth and survival

Heeled in trees Planting

• Soil not too wet • Soak roots overnight • Large hole • Do not put fertilizer in the hole! Planting

• Cut off broken roots • Spread roots out well • Pack soil around roots • Water in well to settle soil around roots immediately after planting • Cover roots, not trunk

Blueberries planted too deep Holes • If an auger is used scrape sides of hole to remove glazing Bramble canes have a 2-year cycle

Next set of primocanes

2015 2016

Primocanes emerge…………….…….next year they and grow Ist year are called Floricanes - have flowers and fruit Blackberries vs. Raspberries

• More common in • More common in South North • Not as hardy as • Reds/Yellows very hardy most rasps. • Hollow • Receptacle stays on • No trellis usually • Most need trellis • Better prices • Better yields • Seeds not problem • Larger seeds • More fall varieties Blackberry vs. Raspberry

• Receptacle remains in blackberry fruit • and is left on the plant with raspberries

Photo courtesy: http://fruit-crops.com/rubus.html drupelets receptacle Relative Hardiness

• Red raspberry (-25 F) • Yellow raspberry (-25 F) • Purple raspberry • Thorny blackberry (-17 F) • Black raspberry (-10 F) • Thornless blackberry (-10 F) Erect Thorny Blackberry

• Trellis not required • Hardiest - winter injured at about -17 F • First variety to be harvested • Sweet • Relatively small seeds • Thorns are painful Blackberry Pruning/Trellising

Thorny Blackberries

Chickasaw Kiowa Erect Thornless Blackberry • Trellis recommended • Hardy to about -10 F • Second in sequence to be harvested • As sweet or better than thorny varieties • Seeds are larger than thorny erect varieties. • Generally the lowest producer of the blackberry types ‘Apache’ & Cal Blake Natchez Thornless Erect • Very new • Large elongated berry (8-9g) • Very good flavor, but variable • Fruit quality slightly lower than Ouachita • Vigorous plant • Few white drupelets • No common diseases noted, but slight anthracnose Ouachita Thornless Erect • Attractive 6-7g berry • Excellent flavor, 10+% soluble solids • Excellent yields, 4,919 lb/A avg. (02-03) • Good post harvest handling • Vigorous plant • Resistant to rosette, no orange rust reported Semi-erect Thornless Blackberry

• Trellis required • Winter killed at about - 10 F • Third in the harvest sequence • Fruit are generally tart until very ripe • Berries and seeds are large • Most productive ‘Triple Crown’ Reed Valley Orchard varieties Triple Crown Thornless Semi-erect • Attractive, largest thornless semi-erect berry, 7.8 g • Very good sweet aromatic flavor with pleasant aftertaste, 10.7% SS

• Lower yields than Chester • Berries firm, but do not hold up as well as Chester

• Resistant to rosette, orange rust, and root rot Chester Thornless Semi-erect • Latest semi-erect thornless to ripen, • Attractive, second largest semi-erect thornless berry • Berries tart, large seeds, 6g • Highest yields • Berries firm, and hold up fairly well • Resistant to rosette and orange rust,, susceptible to root rot Primocane-Fruiting Thorny Blackberry

• Light trellis recommended • Hardiness ? – Have withstood temp. of 10° F • Produce two crops – Primocane Mid Aug.- Oct. – Floricane Mid Jun.- Mid Jul. • Performance variable due to location – Temperatures of 85° F + in Aug. and early Sept. reduce yield, fruit size and quality Bramble canes have a 2-year cycle

Next set of primocanes

2015 2016

Primocanes emerge…………….…….next year they and grow Ist year are called Floricanes - have flowers and fruit Primocane crops only

2015 2016

• Only let Primocanes produce fruit • Late summer = SWD infestation Primocane-Fruiting Blackberry • Thorny –Prime Ark 45 • Thorness –Stark’s Black Gem –Prime Ark Traveller Prime-Ark® 45 • Thorny • Great for Fall market

Pictures John Clark, U. Arkansas Harvest Times

June July August Sept. .

Natchez Oachita Osage Chester Triple Crown

Primocane varieties Blackberry Plant Spacing and Trellises

Spacing Spacing Blackberry in between Type row (ft) rows (ft) Plants/A Trellis Thorny 2 10-12 2,178- erect 1,815 No trellis Thornless 3 10-12 1,452- None or erect 1,210 Low trellis Thornless 6-8 12-13 605- High trellis semi- erect 418

Primocane 2-3 10-12 2,178- No trellis fruiting 1210 Raspberries

–Erect –Thorny –Summer and fall types Summer Raspberry Cultivars

• Black • Red – Bristol – Prelude – Jewel – Boyne – Mac Black – Lauren – Reville (Heirloom) • Purple – Taylor (Heirloom) – Royalty Black - Jewel Blackberry Pruning/Trellising Raspberry Pruning/Trellis Raspberry

Purple - Royalty Fall Raspberry Cultivars

• Also called Primocane Bearing – Joan J thornless (R) – Autumn Britten (R) – Caroline (R) – Heritage (R) – Josephine (R) – Autumn Bliss (R) – Anne (Y) Fall Yellow Raspberries

Anne Fall Red Raspberries

Caroline Raspberry Plant Spacing and Trellises

Spacing Spacing in between Type row (ft) rows (ft) Plants/A Trellis

Red & 2 8-12 2,722-1,815 Yellow no trellis or low trellis Black 3 8-10 1,815-1,452 No trellis or low trellis Purple 6-8 10-12 726- 453 Low trellis Matted Row Strawberries – 8,000-10,000 lb/A Yields Blueberries – 6,000-8,000 lb/A Blackberries – 5,000 lb/A Thorny – 5,000 lb/A Thornless erect (1.4lb=1qt) – 8,000 lb/A Thornless semi-erect Raspberries – 2,700 lb/A Black – 4,000 lb./A Red Ever bearing More Information • http://www.uky.edu/hort/

• [email protected]

• Crop Profiles & Budgets http://www.uky.edu/Ag/NewCrops /intro.html