North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[John Bunker <jbunker@gwi.net>]

Del, Tom and others,


The blackberries that we sent you were propagated by tissue culture.  We are
also now propagating them by root cuttings.  In both cases, what sprouts
from the roots will always be true to type except I suppose in the rare case
of a sport.

My own plants have been in the ground now for 6 years.  Although I do get
some dieback every year, I have also established I nice patch at this point.
This past winter we had a 2 weeks or so of -20 to -25 and no snow cover at
all.  It may be that one of the worst enemies of black berries in the north
is desiccation. Plantings protected from wind seem to do better than those
out in the open.  Not much I can say about voles (or other) eating the canes
back to the ground.  (It's good to know the canes are tasty?)


Although I have been slow to put together a questionnaire for those who are
trialing the plants, I am very interested in your experiences.  In any
event, thanks for the information.  I'm happy to answer any other questions.

John   


*****
John Bunker
Fedco
P.O. Box 520
Waterville ME 04903