Had a friend give me some Brazos berry shoots that are doing well. The plants spread like crazy. They get 5 gallon buckets full of fruit each year but they aren't very sweet.

Has anyone tried any of these other varieties around Brazos or Burleson county?

https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/fruit/Blackberries/blackberries.html

CS78 said:

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Had a friend give me some Brazos berry shoots that are doing well. The plants spread like crazy. They get 5 gallon buckets full of fruit each year but they aren't very sweet.

Has anyone tried any of these other varieties around Brazos or Burleson county?

https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/fruit/Blackberries/blackberries.html

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The newer varieties posses Indian names, and ripen at intervals by variety.

https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/fruit/Blackberries/blackberries.html

Hoping to find someone that has experience with one of those in our area. Looking for a sweeter berry and a plant that will thrive without much effort.

Are they more tart than sweet? Similar to dewberries?

Or just generally flavorless?

If the first, I may be interested in getting some shoots from ya.

A.G.S. said:

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Are they more tart than sweet? Similar to dewberries?

Or just generally flavorless?

If the first, I may be interested in getting some shoots from ya.

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My dad always said the "Brazos" variety made great big berries, but not much flavor.

Not sure what I've got, but they grow wild all over the place on the property, located in Grimes County. Couldn't get rid of them if I wanted to.

Dewberries

I have grown the Rosborough variety for 10+ years, and as with any dewberry/blackberry I've eaten, the level of ripeness dictates the sweetness. Mine have been reliable, prolific producers, with some of the wicked thorns ever.
They do spread, so a berry patch can easily become too wide, for (relatively) easy picking.

Burleson county.

Man, I remember as a kid, Dad had trotlines out at Lake Texoma, Come the right time of the year, whole family would go out for a weekend. The bar ditches on the backroads we took getting there were full of berries. Pick buckets full for jam and cobblers, eat so many it made your stomach hurt. Purple fingers for days. Awesome times. Plus the catfish!

I am friends with an Ag Extension Horticulture advisor who has been collecting data on blackberries grown at a PYO in Brazoria County-Froberg Farms.

A new University of Arkansas release " Caddo" came out on top for fruit quality & disease resistance.
May want to give it a try.

I've grown Kiowa. Large fruit, very thorny plants.

I have some blackberry growing now and full of blooms. First real year after getting them planted.

In DeWitt if anyone needs some shoots. Got these from my dads garden in Dimebox. Not sure on the variety.

I planted rosborough last year and they are current covered in blooms and are growing well. Definitely have some serious thorns and are going to be a little work to keep them from taking over. Hopefully the fruit is good because they are clearly here to stay

Rosborough berries. The unsupported vines can grow to six feet tall.

Those look fantastic. Do these survive in arid environments or do they need regular water?. We've got a place in Coleman county but it's pretty dry out there.

dr_boogs said:

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Those look fantastic. Do these survive in arid environments or do they need regular water?. We've got a place in Coleman county but it's pretty dry out there.

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The blackberries do need some help through the long dry spells. The berry patches I have lost, were likely due to lack of water.
The Feb `21 freeze did not bother them at all. Great crop last year.

Caddo is a great variety for fort bend county.

I also put down a thick layer of pine straw under my canes to keep the weeds and grasses out.

How are you guys trellising these?

Fence line?

DIY t-posts and wire?

Looking for some ideas that would also be somewhat attractive in a landscape.

on the fence around my garden

jagsdad said:

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Man, I remember as a kid, Dad had trotlines out at Lake Texoma, Come the right time of the year, whole family would go out for a weekend. The bar ditches on the backroads we took getting there were full of berries. Pick buckets full for jam and cobblers, eat so many it made your stomach hurt. Purple fingers for days. Awesome times. Plus the catfish!

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This is one of the more country paragraphs I've read in while. Should turn it into a song for us!

Wish I was musically inclined so I could! Maybe I could retire in style. Love music, but can't carry a tune in a bucket.

Smith County here.

We have several varieties in our patch. My favorite are the prime ark freedom though. Netches are also pretty good. They spread like crazy and will take over an area quick though.

Cross-buck fence. Really anything will work.

TikkaShooter said:

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How are you guys trellising these?

Fence line?

DIY t-posts and wire?

Looking for some ideas that would also be somewhat attractive in a landscape.

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Bull panels work great, and the mesh openings are large enough to stick your hand through. Can wire to t posts or make a nicer enclosure with treated or cedar posts and lumber like a yard fence. Plenty of images online.

I worked at a research station for a couple seasons where a lot of horticulture research took place, including blackberry variety trials. Kiowa always was a consistent producer of big berries that had good flavor. As mentioned, its thorny. Ouachita, Navaho, Arapahoe, etc didn't have as good a flavor in my opinion.

Osage is another great variety thats a consistent yielder and has really good flavor. I recently ordered several Kiowa, Osage, and Prime Ark 45 plants. Been too wet to work the ground up to plant here though.

Looks like most places are suggesting Dec to April planting.

Given its mid April…should I hold off, keep my planting area prepped, and plant this winter?

Berries are produced on second year branches - go ahead and get them in the ground for berries next year.

Thanks for all the info. Think I'm going to try adding Rosborough and Caddo. Does anyone know where to get these? I have a couple Brazos I could dig up and trade.

Got mine here https://womacknursery.com/products/rosborough-blackberries

4xAgs said:

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Berries are produced on second year branches - go ahead and get them in the ground for berries next year.

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Prime-ark plants will produce on first year canes as well. I planted some last year and got a few berries.

I have old school native blackberry hedges on my 3 acres in Missouri. Super sweet. But so thorny and annoying. They are indestructible. I have no idea how anyone CAN'T get them to grow, regardless of variety. They will take over everything if you let them.

Ribosomal plants are the Borg of the plant world. Cattails are about as hard to kill. I have those too. Who wants to buy my place? It goes on the market Friday and I'm headed back to Katy to take up the lazy suburban life again.

This thread brings back so many memories. My grandparents had dewberries on two sides of their half acre garden. Sandy soil was great for them. When I was a kid, I would eat more than I would drop in the bucket. From front of the vine to back, it was a minimum of six feet. You had to walk around the backside to pick those. Some great times. My grandmom made fig preserves with them and the occasional cobbler and homemade ice cream in the summer.

We used to pick off the railroad tracks behind the house before they started spraying them with insecticide...

Shooz in Mizzou said:

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Ribosomal plants are the Borg of the plant world.

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Que? To the best of my knowledge, all plants have ribosomes. And who is Borg?

jakeaggie84 said:

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jagsdad said:

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Man, I remember as a kid, Dad had trotlines out at Lake Texoma, Come the right time of the year, whole family would go out for a weekend. The bar ditches on the backroads we took getting there were full of berries. Pick buckets full for jam and cobblers, eat so many it made your stomach hurt. Purple fingers for days. Awesome times. Plus the catfish!

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This is one of the more country paragraphs I've read in while. Should turn it into a song for us!

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But he didn't write anything about mama, or trains, or trucks, or prison, or gettin' drunk.

Country or not, those are dewberries. And you haven't lived unless you picked your belly full on the side of the road...

HtownAg94 said:

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.... And you haven't lived unless you picked your belly full on the side of the road...

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Very true!
For me, growing up, it was along train tracks. Seemed pretty universal to find them there for some reason.

I definitely need to come back to this thread this fall. Should have a couple of new places to be able to plant some black/dew berries in the next few months.