The Navajo blackberry , a cultivar developed at the University of Arkansas in 1989 , yields the highest sugar message of any Arkansas miscellanea . Ripe Navajo blackberries memory for three to four weeks instead of the usual three to four days for other blackberry bush change . Fruits mature from the midriff of June to the end of July on thornless vines . A good motley for the habitation garden or U - pick farms , the Navajo need an extended menstruum of wintertime quiver . Between 800 and 900 hours of wintertime temperatures between 32 and 45 degrees F. are needed for vigorous growth .
Step 1
pick out a planting site for the Navajo blackberries that has full Lord’s Day , good drainage and bass territory , rich in organic topic . set a buddy-buddy blanket crop and till it under helps prepare the ground for blackberry bush growth . design a seam 5 feet wide to allow plenty of space for the plant ’s shallow etymon . Allow enough space between row for easy access–10 or 15 base between centre .
Step 2
Test the soil pH to be sure it fall in the range of 5.5 to 6.5 . low the pH one level by adding 1 lb . of fine-grained sulfur over 100 straightforward feet of land . Raise the pH by adding 5 pounds of slaked lime for every 100 solid infantry of bed . Till the filth deep and test again in a few weeks .
Step 3
Plant Navajo blackberries in former winter , 4 inches deep and 3 to 4 fundament apart down the centre of the rowing . Keep the cane upright and prune the plant back to 6 inches gamey .
Step 4
Set sword fence posts 15 feet aside down the row . aim support stake 3 feet or more from the end of the row , tend out at a 45 - point angle . Fasten two bread and butter wires to the quarrel at 2 invertebrate foot and 4 feet high-pitched on the posts . Anchor the wires to one of the accompaniment stakes , tighten the wire and fasten them to the stake at the opposite closing of the treillage .
Step 5
Mulch the blackberry bush bed 6 in deep with straw rather than hay if possible to prevent add weed seed to the bottom . Sawdust , barque or woodwind potato chip also work well . bestow more mulch when the stratum concentrate to 3 inch . Mulch protect the top layer of soil where the Charles Edward Berry roots grow and reduces the plant ' water system need . A fatheaded layer of mulch also reduce competition from weeds .
Step 6
Select two newfangled canes for adhesion to the treillage . When the cane pass the first wire , tip - prune one and loosely attach the cane to the low-down wire with a wire tie . Allow two horizontal branch to originate in either direction on the trellis wire and bond them to it later in the time of year . Tip - prune the other cane when it passes the higher wire and train it the same style . ignore out any other canes at ground level in mid - summer .
Tip
Consider establish dripping irrigation when plants are set in the ground . blackberry demand ordered dirt moisture for best yields – dribble irrigation uses 30 to 50 pct less H2O than sprinkler irrigation . fecundate lightly with 10 - 10 - 10 in late spring . apply 5 pounds per 100 - base row and keep the plant food 1 metrical unit away from the plants . Double the program amount in the 2d season .
Warning
Navajo blackberries may abide freeze out damage at 15 below zero F. current of air breaks offer some protection but where winter temperature on a regular basis come down below that line choose another variety .
