How to prune blackberries so that there are many large berries later

Why prune blackberries

Blackberries bear fruit in their second year. This means that the shoots that have grown this season will only produce berries the next. It makes no sense to leave already fruiting branches. They will no longer bear fruit, but they will take strength from the bush and thicken it, creating a favorable environment for diseases and pests. If you do not carry out timely pruning of old branches, next year the berries may be small, and also ripen longer than usual.

The stems of most blackberry varieties are covered with thorns. Without regular pruning, you will get dense thorny thickets, in which picking berries is not only inconvenient, but also traumatic.

When to prune blackberries

In the spring, when the snow melts, sanitary pruning is carried out. At this time, you need to remove frozen, broken and dry branches. The main thing is to cope before the blackberries begin to bud.

At the end of the season, not only sanitary, but also formative pruning is carried out. You can start the procedure immediately after the blackberry bears fruit, and finish it before the arrival of stable frosts. The optimal time for most regions is from the end of August to the end of October. At this time, diseased and damaged shoots, as well as those on which there were berries, are removed.

Broken, diseased or dried shoots can be cut throughout the season - from spring to autumn.

How to prune a blackberry

Take a sharp pruner, and even better a lopper, which can easily cope with thick and dense branches. First, inspect the bush and cut off dry or broken branches.

Then proceed to the removal of fruiting shoots. It is easy to find them by the remaining stalks or even small berries that either did not have time to ripen or dried up. If the branches are thick and long, you can first shorten them by half.

Then cut off the fruiting shoots to the very root. It may be difficult to do this with a pruner, so it is better to use a sharp pruner.

After removing all the fruiting shoots, inspect the bush. It is necessary to get rid of the young growth, which is unlikely to survive the frost. Cut off thin, weak and green shoots at the root.

Strong and thick shoots should be left - next year berries will be tied on them. True, if you have a very mature blackberry, you need to keep no more than 8 stems per bush - this amount will be optimal for the normal development of the plant and high-quality fruiting.

Cut stems and leaves can spread infections and pests, so don't send them to the compost pit or leave them anywhere on the yard. Collect all the leftovers, grind them up and throw them in the trash, or even better, burn them.

What to do with blackberries after pruning

To prevent diseases, treat blackberries with special means. You can take a one percent solution of Bordeaux liquid or stir 50 g of copper sulfate in 10 liters of water. Special preparations are also suitable - for example, "Skor", "Hom" or "Abiga-Peak", which are bred according to the instructions on the package. The resulting mixture should be abundantly sprayed with stems and leaves of blackberries, as well as cultivate the soil around the bushes.