Blackberry Facts
Blackberries Are Done For The Year
v Usually Second
fruit of the season
v Fruit produced
from the middle of May until Mid July
v 52 five hundred
foot rows
v 5 miles of
Blackberries!
v 10 acres of
production area
v Thorny variety –
Kiowa - fruits 4 to 5 weeks starting
the middle of May
v Thornless
varieties – Ouchita and Apache - fruit
for approximately
6 weeks
v All canes are
trellised (vines tied to wires) several
times a year so that even the thorny bushes can be
picked with a minimum of “sticks” (by the thorns)
v Blackberries are produced on two-year-old canes.
v After harvest we cut all the canes that fruited to
leave
ample room for the new canes.
Picking
hints
v Best time to pick – May 20 through June 15
v Pick berries when jet black and very plump. The
little
“pockets that make up the berry are called
“drupelets”. Make sure these are plump and
bursting
with juice when you pick them.
v Blackberries will not ripen after picking.
v Berries produced
on thorny bushes are tarter and
hold their flavor better in cooking.
v Berries produced
on thornless bushes are normally
sweeter.
v You may want to
wear gloves when picking
blackberries to avoid
stickers.
Stay Tuned……We have planted a variety that
produces in the fall. We don’t know yet if it will
be this fall