Blackberry Pruning Videos

 

 

It is that time of year, at least it will be once the cold weather leaves us in the SEUS. It is time to start pruning your blackberries. 

Here are links to some blackberry pruning videos.

NCSU Pruning blackberries video

University of Arkansas blackberry pruning video

Winter caneberry checklist/chores

 

This checklist was originally developed for blackberry growers in North Carolina. You may have to adjust your work activities either earlier or later depending on your location. For more detailed information, check the Southern Region Integrated Bramble Management Guide and the Southeast Regional Bramble Production Guide at: Link to SRSFC Caneberry IPM and Production Guides.

 

This list is intended as a general guide. However, it can be used to guide you to think about what types of activities occur at various times of the year. Check the items off as they get done. If you would like other items to be added to this list, send them to me and I will add them next time.

 

WINTER 

Plant growth and development

• Plant is not visibly growing during the winter months although many blackberries will retain their leaves through the winter
• Some floral differentiation is occurring in the flower buds (i.e. they are forming flowers)
• Low chilling cultivars can break bud in January after adequate winter chilling.  See previous blog post for more information.

Developmental stages at this time of year as mentioned in the 2021 Southeast Regional Caneberries Integrated Management Guide are : 1. Dormant 2. Delayed dormant (swollen bud) to green tip.

 

Pruning and trellising

• Pruning should occur in late winter. However, in some areas winter ice storms can do tremendous damage to plants and trellis systems. If you produce blackberries in one of these areas, pruning can take place early winter to help avoid severe damage.
• Pruning and training videos can be found at:
• University of Arkansas Winter Blackberry Pruning
• NC State University Blackberry Pruning
• Make trellis repairs after plants have defoliated but before pruning and training.
• If you have a Rotating Arm Trellis, lay the canes to the ground. If you are in a colder region, have row covers available for protection from cold temperatures.
• Erect types
• Prune out the spent floricanes
• Cut lateral branches back to 12-18”
• Tie or weave canes to lower and upper wires
• Thin canes to 4-8 canes/ hill (4 ft spacing)
• Trailing types
• Prune out spent floricanes
• Tie or weave canes to wire so that they do not overlap
• Prune side laterals to 12-18”
• Thin canes to 6-8 hill (6-8 ft spacing)
• Primocane fruiting raspberries and blackberries
• Prune (mow) primocane fruiting types to ground level

 

Weed control

Check the 2022 Southeast Regional Caneberries Integrated Management Guide

for recommendations.

• Many summer weed problems can be best managed in the fall and winter using preemergent herbicides. Determine what weeds have been or could be a problem in your area. Check with local extension agent for cultural or chemical means to control these weeds. 

Insect and disease scouting

Check the 2022 Southeast Regional Caneberries Integrated Management Guide

 for recommendations.

·      Scout fields for insect and disease damage and remove those canes

• Remove wild blackberries and raspberries by the roots if they are within 600 ft of your planting during the winter 

Winter injury from cold

·      Injury from cold temperatures can occur to the canes and buds throughout the winter. Most often the damage occurs in the spring after the winter chilling hours have accumulated.

·      Review types of injury that can occur to the canes and buds. One site for cold injury information is the Team Rubus Blog.

 

Planting

• Take soil tests to determine fertility needs for spring plantings. 
• There are new raspberry and blackberry cultivars available each year. If you have not tried them or it is not known how they will do in your region, it is best to order a small quantity to see how well they will perform in your area
• For larger growers, prepare list of cultivars for 2023 plantings and order now. Smaller quantities of plants can be ordered in early 2022 for spring planting.
• Nursery lists can be found at:
• North American Raspberry and Blackberry Association 
• For a comprehensive nursery list for all small fruits, see Cornells Nursery Guide for Berry and Small Fruit Crops

 

Water management

• Make repairs to irrigation system (check pumps, lines, etc)
• Plants generally do not need supplemental water in winter 

 

Marketing and miscellaneous

• Order containers for next season
• Make contacts for selling fruit next season

 

Attend grower meetings

North American Raspberry and Blackberry Association is hybrid this year. For more information check here their link. Here is a brief summary of the meeting.

This virtual conference February 21-24, 2022.

A special seven-session virtual short course, “Getting Started in Raspberries & Blackberries,” will be offered. It starts Jan 31. See link above.

North Carolina Commercial Blackberry and Raspberry Association will be holding a meeting on Feb 4, 2022.

Contact Daniel_Shires@ncsu.edu or Karen_Blaedow@ncsu.edu

 

Please check with your local Extension service to learn of meetings in your state.

 

New Chilling Model Website

The NC State Climate Office has updated their chilling model page. Here is the link and I have shown an example for Hendersonville NC for Jan 3, 2022 below.

https://products.climate.ncsu.edu/ag/chill-models/

First you select a model (I prefer the Warmund and Krumme) Model, it takes into account when the temperatures get warm.

The Yazetti and Clark model is also popular.

Select Model(s):

Blueberries (Mainland Model)
Blackberries (Yazetti and Clark Model)
Blackberries (0° to 7°C model with first incidence of  -2.2°C)
Blackberries (Modified Richardson Model)
Blackberries (Warmund and Krumme)
Peaches (Richardson Model)
Apples (Shaltout and Unrath Model)
7.2°C Model (45°F Model)
0° to 7.2°C Model (32° to 45°F Model)

 

Then click on the map to a location that you want, here I chose Hendersonville, NC. 

For Hendersonville Jan 3, 2022, there are 590 chilling hours. On the website, you can see how the chilling has accumulated over time. Late in December there were 621 but the warmer temperatures in the last few days there has been a loss of chilling at this (and probably many other locations).
 

What does this mean? 

Most fruit crops grown in NC require a period of cool weather before they break dormancy and start to grow.  Most blackberries require 400-800 units of chilling. If they do not receive enough chilling you can see irregular bud break (this is common in southern GA, LA, AL, MS and FL). If they have received enough chilling, they will break bud when it is warm. Often times those buds that have started to emerge may get injured by late season cool weather. 

So it is good to monitor what chilling has occurred in an area so you can match those units with the stage of your crop. 

There is also a handy tutorial if you want more informationn

https://products.climate.ncsu.edu/ag/chill-models/#tutorial