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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] source for 'Black Pearl' blackberry?

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  • From: Melissa Kacalanos <mijwiz@yahoo.com>
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] source for 'Black Pearl' blackberry?
  • Date: Mon, 7 Mar 2011 16:20:54 -0800 (PST)

It's this mulching-with-snow idea that's tempting me to try a zone 6
blackberry here in zone 5. We have very generous snow cover, and my herbs
that aren't supposed to be hardy here have overwintered fine.

This laying-the-canes-down idea is confusing, though. The blackberries I've
seen couldn't lie down without breaking, any more than a cornstalk could. How
are you supposed to lay them down without snapping them?

If they were espaliered against the house, would that be better (in terms of
less absolute cold) or worse (in terms of breaking dormancy too early)?

Melissa

--- On Mon, 3/7/11, Michael Dossett <phainopepla@yahoo.com> wrote:

> From: Michael Dossett <phainopepla@yahoo.com>
> Subject: Re: [NAFEX] source for 'Black Pearl' blackberry?
> To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
> Date: Monday, March 7, 2011, 4:56 PM
> Scott, have you tried laying the
> canes on the ground and mulching them? This should help
> tremendously, particularly in areas with reliable snow cover
> in the coldest months to help insulate.
>
> Last year both 'Black Pearl' and 'Marion' came through 3 or
> 4 nights in a row of ~6 degrees (colder in some spots)
> without major cold injury issues here in the Willamette
> Valley of Oregon.  Having said that, it was in early
> December when the plants are in their deepest dormancy.
> Early and late cold snaps seem to be the biggest problems as
> the plants take a while in the fall to reach full dormancy
> and have relatively short chilling requirements (can't
> remember exactly but I think 'Marion' is around 350 hours?)
> so they tend to wake up in late winter, particularly if
> there is nice weather, and be susceptible to cold then as
> well.  Often times the buds on 'Marion' start to swell
> in mid-late January here making the plants particularly
> susceptible to late cold snaps like the teens that we had a
> week and a half ago. 
>
> 'Black Pearl' is quite a bit less susceptible to these
> issues than 'Marion' but this will probably be the biggest
> problem for trying most of the trailing types in the
> mid-atlantic and northeast.
>
> Michael
>
> Michael Dossett
> Corvallis, Oregon
> www.Mdossettphoto.com
> phainopepla@yahoo.com
>
>
> --- On Mon, 3/7/11, Scott Smith <scott@cs.jhu.edu>
> wrote:
>
> > From: Scott Smith <scott@cs.jhu.edu>
> > Subject: Re: [NAFEX] source for 'Black Pearl'
> blackberry?
> > To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
> > Date: Monday, March 7, 2011, 1:10 PM
> > Melissa, I had two Black Pearls and
> > both died to the roots and my low was only about 4F
> that
> > year which is zone 7.  So, zone 6 is a long ways off,
> I
> > would put Black Pearl in 7B or 8A.
> >
> > I am testing many of the new Oregon releases for
> hardiness;
> > thus far the only hardy one for me is Metolius but it
> > produced poor tasting fruit in my climate.  In your
> > zone 5 I expect none of the western trailing varieties
> will
> > be hardy and I would recommend growing Triple Crown
> > instead.  Its not as good as Marion but it is still
> a
> > delicious berry both fresh and cooked.
> >
> > Scott z7a MD
> >
> > On Mar 7, 2011, at 9:20 AM, Melissa Kacalanos wrote:
> >
> > > After thinking for years that blackberries were
> > pointlessly flavorless, I finally tried some 'Marion'
> > blackberry jam, and now I see the point. Delicious!
> > >
> > > 'Marion' is zone 7, and I'm not foolish enough to
> try
> > growing it here in zone 5. However, the new cultivar
> 'Black
> > Pearl' supposedly tastes almost the same, and is
> reputed to
> > be zone 6, and I might be foolish enough to try that.
> > However, the only source I see for it is Raintree, and
> their
> > minimum shipping is rather a lot for just one plant.
> Is
> > anyone else selling it, maybe closer to NY state?
> > >
> > > Or, does anyone have an extra plant to spare? I
> could
> > trade plants from my small fruit collection, or my
> larger
> > collection of culinary herbs.
> > >
> > > Melissa
> > > zone 5, central NY, under yet another foot of
> snow as
> > of last night.
> > >
>







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