Completely remove lateral branches from the lowest 18 inches (45 cm) on vigorous canes and lateral branches from the lowest 12 inches (30 cm) on weaker canes. wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. Properly pruning Blackberries is the key to consistent berry production and healthy plants. Winter is the perfect time to prune thornless blackberry canes and tie in green wood to a trellis. How to Prune Blackberries STEP #1 • Select 4-6 healthy, thick-stemmed canes to keep and then remove the rest. In winter or early spring, prune primocanes by removing damaged, diseased or crowded canes, leaving four to six healthy canes for each plant. In early spring, green sprouts will come up from the soil and also appear on some of the pre-existing canes. Erect and semi-erect varieties should be tipped or cut back to 3-4’ in midsummer. If you are working with a type of blackberry plant that does not produce root buds and only produces crown buds, simply remove weak canes measuring less than 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) in diameter at the base. Cutting these spent canes off the blackberry bush will encourage the plant to produce more first year canes, which in turn will mean more fruit producing canes next year. Pruning refers to making cuts or canes to promote growth in certain areas, Tip: Pruning off dead wood or non-fruiting wood will allow the plant to put its energy into the good canes for maximizing fruit production. For erect varieties, prune in late summer after you are finished picking those yummy berries. Largest blackberries they look the size of big strawberries. If the canes are shorter than 24 inches (61 cm. Here’s how to prune blackberry bushes in the early spring: Start by removing any dead or damaged canes. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. And once those lateral branches that you’ve encouraged to grow get over 18 inches long, tip them back, too. If you are satisfied with your first year growth, however, pruning back the canes so dramatically may not be necessary. They’re very easy to distinguish from the canes that will bear this year’s berries. Blackberries fruit on two-year-old canes. Prune thornless blackberries for the first time after planting. Blackberries only produce fruit on canes that are two years old, so once a cane has produced berries, it will never produce berries again. Less vigorous erect blackberries should be headed to a height between 36 and 48 inches (91 and 122 cm), and semi-erect blackberries should be headed down until they are roughly 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm) above the top trellis wire. Raspberries & Blackberries (Cane Berries): Allow plants to go dormant in the winter without pruning. All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published. Keep your canes trimmed back to from 24 to 48 inches long, depending on how compact you want your blackberry bushes to be. "Clear and simple instructions that were easy to follow.". If you didn’t do a fall pruning, now is the time to remove all canes that bore last year. A blackberry plant will … They aren't very practical since they do not develop fruit, and once they grow too long, they start stealing too much crucial energy from the rest of the plant. This article has been viewed 25,301 times. In the early spring, thin the canes to about five to seven per plant. By this time, you may need the branch loppers to do the job. Blackberry Planting, Care, Pruning and Harvesting Instructions. Prune trailing blackberries in the spring for good growth habits. Thinning blackberries involves removing primocanes to the ground making clean, 45-degree cuts. Find more gardening information on Gardening Know How: Keep up to date with all that's happening in and around the garden. Tip Pruning Blackberry Bushes. If growing everbearing blackberries as a two-year crop, prune out the dead floricanes at ground level after harvest, preferably during the winter. ), simply prune off the top inch (2.5 cm.) The "crown" of the cutting refers to the portion of the cutting that extends just above ground once the cutting is planted. Heading or tipping the canes in the primocane year, triggers the lateral or side branches to grow. They are a native species to the United States and grow as a small shrub or trailing vine. If you are planting a seedling, bush, or vine with well-established erect canes, do not prune them back. Although blackberry roots are perennial, tops are biennial. Follow the same pruning procedure if you have trailing canes. Weak canes include any cane with a diameter less than 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) at its base. Prune the remaining four canes back to 6 inches. For trailing varieties, cut the old canes down to ground level after the harvest is complete. When pruning blackberry bushes for clean up, use a sharp, clean pair of pruning shears and cut off at ground level any canes that produced fruit this year (two year old canes). Remove dead or broken canes cutting them off at the ground. In the summer, after the blackberries are done fruiting, you will need to do clean up blackberry pruning. Pruning Blackberries Prune Fruit-Bearing Canes Primocanes of vigorous, erect blackberries should be headed down so that they are 48 to 60 inches (122 to 152 cm) above ground. This video will help you understand how the plant grows and why you need to prune. Comments Add Comment wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Pruning is necessary to maintain an orderly planting and to control diseases. If you notice winter damage on a lateral cane, cut it back far enough to remove this damage, even if doing so will shorten the branch more than usual. Now that you know how to trim blackberry bushes and when to prune blackberry bushes, you can help your blackberry plants grow better and produce more fruit. Pruning Blackberries. Doing so stimulates the buds at the crown of the cutting, encouraging them to grow more vigorously. Brambles, if left unmanaged, will become large and unmanageable, especially in a garden area. When you are pruning blackberries in winter, cut back long, trailing branches on your erect canes to 12 to 18 inches (30-46 cm.). Learn more... Blackberries are perennial plants with root systems that last from year to year, but the plant's stems, formally called “canes”, are biennial, only lasting two years before being replaced by fresh growth. In autumn, the fruited canes can easily be pruned out from the base after harvesting, and you should then take the bundled-up current year’s canes and train them along the lower wires to make space for … Then, thin out the remaining new primocanes until there are only five or six per hill. In the first spring, when new canes emerge from the base of the stool, cut back any old wood to soil level. Thin the blackberries in late winter or early spring. Once a cane stiffens, it will be able to support the weight of fruit and foliage better, making it less likely to break. Cut a little of the tip off the top of it daily. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/0\/03\/Prune-Blackberries-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Prune-Blackberries-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/0\/03\/Prune-Blackberries-Step-1.jpg\/aid4590401-v4-728px-Prune-Blackberries-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"