Blackberry triple crown

Nowadays, it is rare to find blackberry shrubs on garden plots, as they are associated with acidic berry vegetation, as well as with a plant that has thorns and is inconvenient for picking fruits. But scientists in all countries are trying to bring out new varieties, and they succeed very well. Blackberry varieties with sweet berries and thornless shoots have already been obtained. One of the newer thornless varieties with sweet fruits is the Triple Crown Blackberry.

A brief excursion into history

This variety was bred by Swiss breeders from the Promo Fruit company, the variety is patented at the world level. Private breeder Peter Howenstein bred the blackberry. He crossed the famous varieties "Chester Thornless"And" Loch Ness ". Thanks to the professionalism of this person, a large number of new blackberry varieties have appeared.

It is interesting! Blackberry is a shrub with thorns, reminiscent of a hedgehog, which is why the culture was called "blackberry".

Blackberry triple crown description and characteristics

A perennial shrub of low stature, grows vertically, does not differ in spreading.

Erect shoots, thornless, there are many of them.

The leaves are green in color, the edges have large denticles.

Flowers are white, large.

The berries are black, glossy, round or oval.

The brushes grow vertically upward, have many fruits, do not hang.

Blackberry triple crown features

The ripening period is early, the yield is good. The variety is immune to disease. Recommended for cultivation in hot climates. The fruits are large, weighing seven to fifteen grams, the taste is dessert, very sweet, even in not fully ripe fruits, there is a slight sourness. The inner contents are dense and juicy. Aromatic properties are pronounced. The fruits are well transported, packaged and stored well.

Resistant to dry and frosty periods.

The variety has good drought tolerance, the berries do not bake in direct sun. Blackberries are resistant to frost, but in Russian conditions, it is required to cover the bush for the winter season with any insulation.

Yield indicator, fruiting period.

The variety gives a high yield - fifteen to twenty-five kg from one blackberry. The bush bears fruit for a long time, begins in the last June days, continues until September days. The fruits hang on the bush for a long time, do not fall off when fully ripe.

Blackberry triple crown planting

Blackberries are easy to grow. Even beginner gardeners can cope with this, you just need to be familiar with the signs of this plant.

Optimal time.

As a rule, it is recommended to plant blackberries in the spring season, because they will take root faster and will develop in the spring. However, in areas where the winter season is not so frosty and frost-resistant varieties, which include "Asterina”, Are planted in the autumn, but the seedlings will need to be covered for the winter.

How to choose a site for planting.

The landing site should be well lit and warm, and there should be protection from the wind. The soil is chosen neutral, not swampy, not calcareous. Blackberry culture feels comfortable on loams, well-drained soils.

The place is prepared in advance, weeds and its roots are removed, and also leveled.If necessary, the pH of the soil is regulated, the earth is well dug up.

How to choose and prepare seedlings.

In order to avoid disappointment, it is advisable to buy planting material in special nurseries that value their reputation. If you buy blackberries at the bazaar, then ask the seller what are the features of the variety, if he answers incorrectly or uncertainly, then just leave him. The survival rate is best observed in annual bushes.

The seedling should be strong, healthy, have well-developed roots, two thickened, up to 5 cm in diameter, shoots, at the base should be a living bud.

Planting algorithm.

The substrate is prepared before planting. For this purpose, fertile soil is mixed with humus or compost fertilizer (ten kg), superphosphate (twenty to thirty grams), potassium sulfate (thirty to forty grams), wood ash (fifty to sixty grams) are added, if the soil is highly acidic, lime is added (fifty-seventy grams).

Blackberry triple crown is planted in a bush method. The spacing between the bushes should be one hundred cm, in the row spacing - about two hundred cm.

Groundwater should be located one and a half meters lower from the surface soil layer.

Planting progress.

1. Before planting, the root system is examined, excess roots are removed, elongated roots are shortened.
2. When the roots dry out, they are contained in the root-forming solution for two to three hours.
3. A landing pit is dug, dimensions - 70x70x70 cm.
4. A substrate is poured into each pit, then it is filled with water, wait for absorption.
5. The seedlings are lowered into the hole, the roots are well straightened.
6. Then they are sprinkled with a substrate, shaken a little to distribute the earth equally between the roots, the soil is slightly compacted.
7. Further, the seedlings are covered with soil, the earth is well compacted.
8. The kidney deepens by two to three cm.
9. After planting, a groove with a board is built around the seedlings, each bush is watered with five to seven liters of water.
10. At the end, mulching is carried out (ten cm layer) with humus, peat, straw, sawdust.
11. After planting, the shoots are pruned, in height after pruning they remain about twenty centimeters high.

Blackberry triple crown care

The shrub needs support. The best way is to use a trellis. For this purpose, columns or pipes, two meters long, are driven in on both sides of the row, with an interval of ten meters from each other, 3 rows of wire are pulled onto them, depending on the growth of the shrub, shoots are attached to the support. Young bushes do not need a garter, they just lean against the support.

Cutting the bush is also an important procedure. Fruiting of the variety begins two years after planting. When the young middle shoots reach more than one meter, their apical parts are pinched ten to fifteen cm. If the lateral shoots are growing rapidly, then they are also subject to light pruning. But not instantly, but when they reach a length of half a meter.

In the spring season, the frozen apical parts are cut off to the first formed bud. In the autumn season, dried, damaged lashes and excess, weak growth are cut off. In addition, old branches are removed under the root, which no longer bear fruit. After autumn pruning, only powerful young shoots remain.

Watering must be done carefully. The first 1.5 months after planting, watering is carried out systematically. After the bush takes root, watering is recommended once every seven days. When the plant is bearing fruit, it is regularly watered right before harvesting. Blackberries do not tolerate weeds. Therefore, it is always necessary to get rid of it.

To facilitate maintenance, the trunk circle is mulched, thanks to the procedure, moisture will be preserved, the growth of weeds will slow down, and you will not have to often loosen the soil under the bushes. In the aisle, the soil is loosened six to seven times per period.

Fertilizers are applied in the spring season. Nitrogen-containing mixtures: urea, ammonium nitrate, organic substances. Potassium is applied annually, phosphorus - once every three years.

How to collect and store berries.

Ripening of the variety begins in the last June-first July days. Ripening occurs gradually, not all berries at once. It is necessary to collect ripe purple-black fruits. The berries are plucked carefully, without pressing hard. Collecting should be carried out in small containers, it is recommended to immediately put them in a cool place or simply remove from the sun's rays.

Before storage, the fruits are sorted out, damaged, moldy ones are removed, since they will spoil everything. To store, washing the fruits is not necessary, it is recommended to wash them right before use.

For freezing, the fruits are separated from the fruit legs, washed under the shower, laid out on a napkin and dried.

Freezing is carried out in a special way. The berries should be laid out in 1 row on a flat surface (board, tray, cardboard) and sent to the freezer.

Once frozen, they are transferred to a storage container and placed back in the freezer. This is done with the remaining fruits.

It should be noted that the fruits in the container are distributed for their use one time, because the second time the blackberries are not frozen.

Before freezing the berries, get rid of all the living creatures - the fruits are poured with cold water for five to ten minutes, then they are thoroughly dried.

The berries, grated with sugar, retain their useful qualities very well and for a long time. For this method, crumpled, defective berries are suitable. For this purpose, the fruits are ground with sugar (dosage - one kg of fruits / one kg of sugar).

The grated berries are kept for ten to twelve hours in the dark and cool, before the sugar is completely dissolved, then they are transferred to containers for storage. Stored in the refrigerator or cellar, or simply frozen, thereby extending the storage time.

In the refrigerator, fresh berries are stored for up to twenty days.

The fruits, ground with sugar, are kept cool for up to six months.

The berries grated with sugar in the freezer will be stored for up to twelve to eighteen months.

Fresh frozen fruits will stay in the freezer for up to three years.

How to prepare blackberries for wintering

In the autumn season, the shrubs are prepared for the long winter season.

The bushes are cut off first. Shoots that have borne fruit are cut off. Diseased or attacked by harmful insects shoots are cut at the root, we do not leave hemp.

Weak, thin green sprouts are cut off.

In young twigs that remain for the winter, three-quarters of the length are left.

After trimming, seven powerful young lashes remain. Then all residues of vegetation and a layer of mulch are removed from the soil and burned outside the garden area.

Loosening of the soil, introduction of humus, potassium, watering is carried out. Mulching is performed with a thickened layer. Spraying with Bordeaux mixture is carried out. If abrupt changes in temperature conditions are predicted, then the shoots are removed from the trellises, bend carefully to the ground and take cover.

Blackberry triple crown reproduction

Reproduction methods: using root suckers, cuttings (green cuttings are taken), dividing the shrub.

Root offspring is a young growth that has formed on the root system. It is usually removed by gardeners in order to avoid excessive density of the bush. But, if it is necessary to breed a blackberry crop, then this is an excellent planting material, which has already been tested.

To apply this method, proceed as follows.Several powerful and well-bearing parent shrubs are selected. On May days, they are dug out together with an earthen lump, in length the shoots reach about ten to fifteen cm. Then the seedlings are transferred to a new site.

The most developed planting material is selected, one year old. The branches should be more than ten mm thick, have strong roots, twenty cm long.

Cuttings are used to preserve varietal traits.

For this purpose, the top is cut off, 2 extreme buds are left.

A stalk is made from it, which has 1 bud, it should contain a part of the stem, 1 bud and 1 leaf.

The shoot is treated with growth stimulating agents.

Next, a substrate is prepared containing sand and peat in equal proportions.

Small containers are filled with the substrate - paper cups or film cylinders.

The seedlings are placed under polyethylene, the temperature regime is maintained within twenty-two to twenty-five degrees, the soil moisture is ninety percent and the air is one hundred percent.

Thirty days later, the seedlings are transplanted to a new site.

Division of the bush. This method is used when transplanting the mother shrub. The bush is dug up, young, strong shoots with a well-developed root system are separated from it and transplanted. Moreover, on the uterine shrub, several young branches remain on all sides. The old whips are being removed.

Interesting fact! The most harmless preventive measure against diseases and harmful insects is boiling water. It is necessary early in the spring or late in the fall to water the blackberry and the soil under it with boiling water. This will get rid of a large number of enemies, fungus and viruses.

Diseases and harmful insects

The plant has good disease resistance and pest resistance. But trouble can happen to him. As gardeners say, in frequent cases, the plant infects anthracnose.

Anthracnose. The disease caused by the fungus affects the entire bush, the leaves are more affected. The disease manifests itself in the rainy period, with excessive watering, in humid climatic conditions. On the leaves along the veins and along the edges, gray spots appear, then they have a purple border. Holes form in the damaged areas. The disease also affects the berries, ulcers of a gray color form on them, the growth of fruits slows down, then they simply fall off.

To prevent fungi in the spring season, remove all the lashes damaged during the winter season. If a bush is found to be damaged, then treatment with fungicidal preparations is carried out. As a preventive measure, in the autumn, after cutting the bush and digging up the earth, the bush is sprayed with a Bordeaux mixture.

In addition, it processes the plant early in the spring, before the growing season begins. Blackberries are treated with fungicidal agents for prophylactic purposes in the spring season, first before the flowering period, then when new shoots grow up to forty cm in length, they are processed for the third time after the berries are harvested.

Blackberry can also be affected by brown and white spot, rust and phylosticosis. These are all fungal infections, you need to fight them in the same way as with the above disease.

After the bush has bloomed and the buds have tied, the bush is treated with biological agents or folk methods.

Harmful insects are a separate topic. If fungi appear in a bad climate, then diseases caused by viruses are spread by harmful insects. First, preventive measures are taken against aphids.

If you find aphids on the branches, cut the infected piece and burn it. For preventive purposes, a 1% solution of the drug "Nitrafen" is used. Bushes are processed in the spring, before the juice begins to move and the buds swell.

To avoid diseases and attacks of enemies, do not plant brambles next to raspberries and strawberry crops. They have the same diseases and pests.

New varieties make the life of gardeners easier, because they are immune to diseases, picking fruits is comfortable, because they are thornless. And the blackberry triple crown, plus everything, is distinguished by sweet and tasty fruits, therefore, it can be recommended to everyone.