Best Practices - Berries

Imagine stepping out to your backyard and plucking fresh fruit from your home garden. You would no longer have to go to the grocery store and back for some fruit that's been shipped who knows how many miles from who knows where. Okay, maybe they'll tell you where and who grew it, but there's nothing quite like growing your own. Why else would you want to plant fruits? Because they're an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and nutrients. They may be labor intensive, but they are a high value crop, so it's worth it and very rewarding. Let's start with small fruits, like berries. This blog post is based on a lecture from Gina Fernandez, a professor at NC State University.

Berries can be harvested from spring to fall, you can grow an abundance of berries in a relatively small space. When choosing your planting location you should choose an area free of weeds and with great soil drainage. You should also test the soil and find out the pH balance since the soil needs to be prepared in advance. Berries require specific pH levels, for example, blueberries are more acidic, you can add certain elements to adjust the pH.

pH LEVELS.

Requirements:

Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, & grapes: 6 - 6.5

Blueberries: 4.5

Management:

Increase pH level: add lime

Decrease pH level: add sulphur

Once you've prepared the soil and the pH is at the level you need it to be, you should choose two to three varieties which are adapted to your area's climate, disease free, and tolerant to pests. Common pests include voles, deer, and squirrels. Below are specific details about blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries.

Raspberries

Bowl of Berries

BLACKBERRIES.

• Produce fruit crop in 2nd year after planting

• Average yield: 10 – 15 lbs per plant

• Life expectancy: 5 – 20 years

• Planting: 1” below ground, 3 – 8 feet apart.

• 2 gallons of water per day while in development stage

• 10/10/10 fertilizer

RASPBERRIES.

• Produce fruit in 2 years

• Yields 2 - 4 lbs per planT

• Life expectancy: 5 – 10 years

• Planting: 1” below ground, 3 – 8 ft apart

• 2 gallons of water a day

• 10/10/10 fertilizer

STRAWBERRIES.

• Produce fruit in 1 or 2 years

• Yield: .33 to 2 lbs per plant

• OPTION 1: Matted row : 7,200 plants

• Plant in spring first year, no fruit.

• Harvest in 2-years

• Used by commercial growers in NC.

• Avoid growing strawberries in summer and avoids diseases

• Plant in march 1 – 2 ft within row. 3 -4 feet between row

• 8/8/8 fertilizer

• OPTION 2: Annual hill: 17,400 plants

• Raised bed 3 ft wide, 6” high

• Black plastic recommended

• Plant in early October

• Do not replant into same area next year

• Pick in morning, do not rinse with water until you’re ready to serve

BLUEBERRIES.

Highbush and Rabbiteye

• Produce fruit in 3 years

• Yield: 8 lbs if highbush, 12 lbs if rabbiteye

• Life expectancy: 20 – 30 years

• Planting: 1” below, 3 to 4’ apart

• Plant in March

• 2 gallons of water a day while developing