Growing Blackberries Naturally

I just leave the canes, and I left them this past year, and they have thrived and been totally disease free!

We just moved onto 18 acres last winter and this spring I was thrilled to discover all sorts of wild blackberry around the property. I've picked gallons upon gallons of them (currently in the freezer so I can process everything at once). I'm going to finish up picking the next couple of days, because they're pretty much done now, just waiting for the last red berries to finish ripening. And I still can't get to probably 1/3 of the canes!

These are pretty much completely wild brambles, and I've paid the price picking them this summer -- my hands and arms look like I fell into a box of kittens playing with razor blades, and my bottom half has been chiggered like mad. I don't want to mow/brush hog over everything to start over entirely next year, but I really want to get these brambles under some semblance of control.

After some research online, my tentative plan is to work through the bramble patches this summer and pull out the dead canes, and try to prune what's green, and train what's left to trellises. Maybe transplant some plants into a more accessible area on the property and arrange them in more easily harvestable rows. But I'm worried that pruning AND transplanting would be too much of a shock in one season.

Thoughts from more experienced people?

Welcome to Permies Sandra!

Spring time has been the best time for me to transplant blackberries. Most other things seem to do better when transplanted in the Fall here, but the blackberries have done best when transplanted in the Spring. I bet they would be fine to be pruned and transplanted, they seem pretty tough.

I got tired of the wild blackberries cutting me to shreads as well. So I got a mix of the thornless ones last year and have been really pleased with them so far. They have great flavor and are actually more healthy and vigorous than even the wild blackberries!

Hope your blackberries continue to do well!

-Steve

My berries are finally getting ripe!

They look great William!

Blackberries starting to ripen in late May.

This blackberry is almost 10 feet tall growing up through the pokeweed!

The blackberries started to ripen in early June! Wow are they sweet, tangy, and flavorful, and quickly becoming one of my favorite fruits!

I was watching a YouTube video about foraging for blackberries and the fellow went into the history of blackberries. Apparently, they used to have a carnivorous plant label ! All those brambles will pull you down and use you for nutrients!!!

Honestly, after battling blackberries for 2 years now. I believe it! Of course this year has been rough for plants. I never thought I'd see the blackberries thickets we're surrounded with turn brown just after they set fruit. Probably will just be mutantly monstrous next year *sigh*