Jerry:

I would take the unrooted Navajo back to Lowes, together with the box and receipt, and ask to exchange it for one with some roots. The may require you to make a return and repurchase rather than an exchange, which confuses their system. This time, open the box and look at the roots before going through the checkout line. Chances of an unrooted cane rooting are low, and there is no reason to lose an entire year of growth.

Make sure you build a strong trellis for your TC berries, which should be planted at 4 feet apart. These things grow very vigorously, and you will have to learn how to prune and control them. If you can get good cane growth this season, you will have lots of blackberries next season.

Blueberries come in all sizes and stages of development, depending partly on age of the plants. If they are potted, 2 or 3 year plants, and are big and healthy, you should be able to get a seamless transplant. If so, I wouldn't bother to pick off the blooms the first year. For bareroot plants, I would pick off blooms the first season. Beyond that, it is overkill in my view if the plants grow big and strong the first season.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

I'd also take the Navaho back.

A recent study in northern highbush blueberry (cultivars Duke, Bluecrop, and Elliott) investigated the issue of removing flower buds vs. not removing them. In the first two years, they removed flower buds from half of the plants, and allowed the other half to fruit. In the third year, the yield was lower on early-cropped plants in all three cultivars. In the fourth year, there was only a yield difference in Elliott, but the crop was very light that year due to poor pollination, so differences could have been masked.

More importantly, though, there was a significant reduction in root weight, crown weight, and weight of new wood due to early cropping in all three varieties.

Anyway, I know that rabbiteyes tend to be more vigorous, so I don't know if the results will translate exactly. I think a good compromise is to completely remove the flower buds the first year, and thin them quite a bit in the second so that you get some fruit at least.

But, as Don suggests, if your plants are larger potted ones, you should be able to just transplant them. The study I describe above was done on typical commercial nursery stock.

Overall, your idea for a study sounds good, but your sample size is a bit too small to really get any definitive results.

Also, for a good guide on constructing a blackberry trellis, google search "growing blackberries North Carolina" and a great guide should pop up.

With regards to your Navaho plant if I read your question right, you were simply curious about the "branched stick" (probably about 8-12" long) with the one bud on it. As long as it has a viable root system attached to it, you should be fine as the new primocanes will grow for next year's crop from the crown/root system. The "stick" you are referring to is the plant's "floricane" and may even produce a few berries this year from that bud. Remember, blackberry plants for the most part are 2 year cycle plants. The first year it will produce a primocane (i.e., the stick) which will form new buds (i.e., the bud) in the fall which after its winter rest (now) and it gains enough chill hours, will open in the spring and produce new growth with blossoms forming on the ends of that new growth. So, you should be OK if there is a viable root system attached to "the stick".

As far as your rabbiteye's go, I would recommend pruning your plants back 25% right after you plant them and remove all buds this coming spring. Pruning the plant back allows the root system to acclimatize to its new environment without having to work so hard right off the bat once its ready to wake up. The reason for removing the blossoms the first year goes along with that same theory. My friend last year decided not to remove the blossoms from his rabbiteyes because he wanted to take the berries to the fresh market and make his money back from purchasing the plants; and he did and then some! However, because of the weight of the berries and the weakness of the plants that first year (i.e., because the new plants were focused on growing the berries rather than the growing the plant itself), most of the plants after harvest were leaning over with their canes and leaves a "stressed" yellowish brown in color rather than strong and upright and a good healthy green. In addition, and this is the most important part since the buds form in the summer and fall for next years crop, the buds were either very small and not very healthy looking or simply non-existent. This year, my friend bought some more blueberry plants and the first thing he did was prune them back approximately 25% and he plans to remove all the blossoms when they appear in a few weeks. I don't want to take anything away from jellyman's or fruitgirl's write-ups, but this has been my experience down here where it gets HOT in the summer. Hope this helps.

Don & Fruitgirl,
Thanks so much - great information. I truly appreciate your advice.

Yes my sample size is a bit small - probably no statistically significant data to be gleaned. My Blueberry plants are container grown and a couple years old - so I guess I will get a few berries this year. But I'll follow with my test on the other two plants (no fruit for Premier/Woodard in 2008, and no fruit for Woodard in 2009).

As for the Navaho - it's heading back to Lowes this weekend. And great idea to investigate BEFORE I buy - although I'll probably look like a shoplifter looking for roots on the replacement (everything is inside the box, except for the 6" bare stems, and the internal plastic bag is cinched up top with a rubber band) - but hey, I don't want to make another return!

Thanks again.

Cheers!
- Jerry