The Best Time to Transplant Blackberry Bushes

Soil Preparation

• Prepare the soil in the area where you will put your transplant by loosening it and amending it. Loosen the soil with a hoe or rototiller to a depth that is at least 6 inches deeper than the length of the roots of your transplant. As you turn the soil, work in compost. This improves the soil texture and feed your berry plants.

Transplanting

• Start by trimming your transplant so the canes are only 6 inches tall. This encourages stronger growth and makes the plant easier to work with. Dig a hole at least 3 inches deeper and slightly wider than the transplant's roots. Set the transplant into the hole, then fill in the hole with the soil you removed. Tamp down the soil to secure the transplant. Water the area deeply once you have put in the plants. To finish off, dress the area with compost or other mulch.

Blackberry Care

• Water your transplant every other day the first week, water twice a week the following week, tapering off to once a week in the third week. After this, your blackberry should be established and only need an inch of water when fruiting or when the weather is extremely hot and dry. When the plants bloom, fertilize them with a 5-10-10 fertilizer or other low nitrogen fertilizer. Keep the area around the berries free of weeds.

Pruning

• Without pruning, your blackberries can become a tangle of brambles, but improper pruning reduces or halts fruit production. Always keep in mind that fruit is produced on the canes grown in the previous year. When pruning in the fall, cut the new canes back so they are only three feet tall and cut canes that produced fruit to the ground. In late winter, trim about 1 foot off the remaining canes and prune back any side branches to 1 foot. Pruning should start in the year after you transplant, not the first year.