I wood like to get some blackberry's growing this year. When is the best time of year to transplant blackberries and raspberries..

-- (hunt11@cyberriver.net), January 30, 2000

Answers

Response to berries

Generally early spring. Fall can work, but it depends on where you are. You'll frequently come across recomendations for fall planting, but if you're far enough north, it just doesn't work as well.

If you are ordering the plants, the companies will ship at roughly the right time to plant. If you are digging plants to transplant, dig when the ground can be worked. If you have to save the plants now or at any other time, dig as best you can, either plant and keep well watered and shaded, or if the ground's frozen, store in a cold but not exposed area until you can plant. Yes the plants might be frozen in the garden, but they won't survive being frozen as hard if they are bare-root. Sometimes I'll put them in pots of dirt if I can to give them a bit more protection. It also helps them survive if I've erred a bit on the coldness of the storage location. They can do a bit of growing (mostly roots) if they warm up too much. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), January 30, 2000.

Response to berries

I live in Wv. Wood it be best to cut back the berry vines or let them be long..

-- (hunt11@cyberriver.net), January 30, 2000.

Response to berries

Well, at transplanting, I'd cut them back. If you're buying them they should be about right. If you're digging them yourself, cut the stems back to a foot or less. How much pruning they'll need after they start growing will depend on what particular kinds of raspberries and blackberries you have and how you're growing them. It also depends on exactly what you mean by "blackberries". There are black raspberries, stiff black berries, and dewberries commonly available. It also makes a difference whether your blackberries and raspberries are single-crop or everbearing types.

If your berries are the stiff caned sort, you don't absolutely have to have any kind of support for them. If they are trailing sorts, you'll probably need to do something. But the pruning difers for the different sorts. Very, very , VERY generally, you cut away the old canes after harvest. Unless they're everbearing.

I don't know about gardening as far south as you live. So I really don't have any idea about the varieties you might be planting. If you want more help, go ahead and post whatever additional information you have on the plants. If you're buying them, there should be at least stiff/trailing cane, single-crop/everbearing information in the catalog. If you are getting them from someone, ask them to tell you as much as they can.

Sorry I can't give you exact instructions, at least not yet. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), January 31, 2000.