Raising Blackberry Bushes

• Organic Gardening For Beginners
• Companion Planting Guide
• Seed Saving Tips & Techniques

If you mean to grow a vegetable garden it is a nice idea to think about adding some fruit to your planning. You will discover there’s nothing simplier and easier to cultivate than a few blackberry bushes.

The next time you are out on a walk look out for them. They are simple to spot once you know what you are looking for. Their most identifiable feature is the thorns that extend from their branches. It is useful to remember where you’ve noticed the blackberry bushes so that you’re able to gather the wonderful fruits which they supply. The fruits usually mature on the plants in towards the end of the summer. They flower with fragrant white flowers in the spring. Blackberry bushes are located all over America and most other countries with an appropriate environment. They produce the very best berries when positioned in the full sun, although you can still find them in sheltered locations also.

Blackberry bushes can often be found close to raspberry bushes in the wild. Although wild blackberry bushes produce smaller berries than the blackberry bushes you plant from a nursery, the wild berries tend to be more flavorful. It is important to watch out for poison ivy which often grows in the same areas as blackberry bushes. Poison Ivy rash is the cost that lots of berry pickers pay when trying to harvest the berries.

The situation of natural blackberry bushes were marked and remembered by the Native Americans in order that they could harvest them every year. They used the berries to eat, but in addition they used them to dye animal skins to produce a richer, darker color.

The first settlers used blackberries to treat a number of illnesses. They were particularly useful for respiratory illnesses along with coughing. The fruit is also used to produce a rich colored, sweet wine by lots of people that like to produce handmade wines. The overall favorite use for these sweet, delicious berries, though, is blackberry jam. They also make a delicious pie, if you do not mind the seeds.

If you’re considering growing blackberries on your property it is best to grow them along the edge where there isn’t a lot of people traffic. This is to prevent getting scratched by the sharp, long thorns. The bushes should be pruned after they have finished fruiting. They need to be trimmed back to about 18″ above the ground. This is done to prevent them from growing the tall runners that are inclined to have more thorns than berries on them.

If you’re going to plant a number of bushes make sure to allow enough space so that you do not get as scratched when picking the berries. However close the bushes are to each other collecting blackberries is a job that calls for wearing a long sleeved shirt. Blackberry bushes also have a long life span so you’ll want to keep this in mind when picking an area to place them.