How to Grow Salmonberries

Select a good site for your salmonberry plant. It prefers a naturally moist environment with partial shade exposure. One plant can grow up to 10 feet in both width and height, so it needs space to sprawl. If you don't have a naturally moist site, such as a streambed, you'll need to water more frequently.

Dig a hole twice as deep and wide as the plant's root ball. Remove the salmonberry plant from its container and gently unwind and untangle the roots before planting. If its roots appear broken, clip off the end with shears.

Place the plant in the prepared hole so the roots spread out against the soil and the plant sits vertically straight. Push soil into the hole, completing the planting.

Water the salmonberry thoroughly saturating the soil. Thereafter, water the salmonberry plant when the soil feels lightly moist to the touch, again saturating it. If your site is drier, water it more frequently than if you were able to plant in a naturally boggy area. Monitor the soil until you know how many days it takes to go from soaked to lightly moist and water accordingly.

Fertilize your plant with slow-release, balanced fertilizer, such as 10-10-10 or 20-20-20. Apply the right dose range based on the plant’s size.

Prune the plant in the late winter to early spring, removing dense, tangled cuttings. Salmonberry can form a thicket if unpruned. Remove interior growth winding around other branches or growing up or down, interfering with neighboring branches. Trimming branch tips, as your plant grows too tall maintains a desired height.

Harvest salmonberries when ripe, typically midsummer. The berries turn from yellow to red or orange and develop a sweet taste when ready for picking. They can be naturally mushy.