Blackberry

Blackberry

Rubus fruticosus

Plant out 4 weeks before your last spring frost. Space plants 36 in (91 cm) apart.

Photo: Ivar Leidus, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

When to plant

Timed from your frost dates, so it holds wherever you garden. Give yours and every step below becomes a date.

See the dates for your garden

Enter your average last spring frost and first fall frost. Every timing on this site turns into a calendar date. Not sure of yours? Your local extension service or a search for “last frost date” and your town will tell you; the app finds them from your location.

Last spring frost
First fall frost

Saved in this browser only. Nothing is sent anywhere.

Optimal Spring Transplant (Potted)

From a plantRecommended from a plant
  1. Plant out4 weeks before your last spring frost
  2. First harvestthe first crop about 2 years after planting

Optimal Spring Transplant (Bare Root)

RootRecommended root
  1. Plant out4 weeks before your last spring frost
  2. First harvestthe first crop about 2 years after planting

Optimal Fall Transplant (Bare Root)

Root
  1. Plant out6 weeks before your first fall frost
  2. First harvestthe first crop about 2 years after planting

Growing blackberry

Spacing in the row
36 in (91 cm)
Between rows
96 in (244 cm)
Planting depth
Same depth as it grew in the nursery; cover bare roots with about 1 inch of soil
Sun
Full Sun
Years to first crop
2
Hardy to
USDA zone 5
Life cycle
Perennial

Feeding

How often
Twice a year: early spring and after harvest. Spread a complete fertilizer along the row as new growth starts, keep it off the canes, and do not feed late in summer, which pushes soft growth into winter.

Your blackberry, planned to the day.

Canopy turns these timings into dates from your own frost data, places every plant at its spacing on your garden map, and tracks it all the way to harvest.

Add blackberry to your planting calendar →

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