Hi everyone! Regardeng BLACKBERRIES, we, on the opposie side of the pool, have the same problems of OVERWINTERING the canes and the flower buds. Admittedly I yet have no own experience as I got interested in blackberries only this fall when discovered the existance of the new thornles and prolific varieties. So I read all that was worth reading in the Russian and US internet, especially the rather high-profile specialised forums of our blackberry enthusiasts.. I discovered that throughout Russia and Kazakhstan which both have areas with very serious frosts blackberry growing in those is nevertheless quite successful. Maybe someone here would benefit from their experience same as e.g. you grow plums of Russian origin such as ptitsin and fofanoff. Apparently Blackberries can bring huge yealds in climates with very low winter temps, even downing to -40C for rather ptolonged periods. The TECHNIQUE below allows overwintering without much problem. Plus some easy principles to follow. 1. All blackberries need to be laid down and covered for the winter, preferably after the first frost when the land is frozen. To ensure that this task is easy and hassle free: 2. Choose thornless varieties only. Those with thorns are said to be hell to lay and cover. 3. In early summer watch for the new canes (primocanes) to emerge. As soon as a shoot reaches 15-20cm carefully bend it 90 degrees and secure with a metal peg. When the cane grows another 40-60cm, secure it parallel to the ground with yet another peg. After it reaches 1 m let it grow as it will but better tie to the lowest string of the trellis Which gets them out of the way. Do not tip the ends as this would increase the leaf mass. Do the bending for all the emerging primocanes. 4. In autumn at the time of first frosts when all the fruiting canes have long been cut down lay the primocanes in lines stretched along one side of the trellis. Peg them to the ground, cover with two layers of 60g/m2 thick white non-woven fabric and secure all sides to the ground with no holes. This is said to help greatly even if serious frosts come before the snow. In milder and wetter climates they also put a plastic film layer on top of the fabric, leaving however the end bits open so there is always air circulation. The advice here is to experiment as all natural circumstaces differ. 5. Take off the cover layers gradually, and completely only after all danger of frost is over. By then the canes are likely to bear some yourg leaves and side shoots, but this is ok. Raise them carefully as the canes of come varieties are brittle, and tie to the trellis. 5. Winer frosts may not be a problem for blackberries, but summers need to be warm or hot. The shorter and milder/cooler the summers, the earlier fruiting varieties should be chosen. 6. Floricane varieties like PA Freedom in cooler and shorter summer climates may very sucessfully fruit if treated in the same way as other primocanes, i.e. as above, in a two-year culture. They would be one of the earliest to perform. If you have any questions do feel free to write me, I will try to help with more information. cathpetro at gmail dot com.

Of the ones you list I have Peace, Oklahoma and Dainty Bess. I had Cl. Peace and shovel pruned it because, although it grew to 8 feet tall, it never bloomed. I mean never. In 6 years I got a total of ONE flower on it. My regular Peace is about 3 X 3 feet and blooms nicely in flushes but it does black spot. There is usually some cane die back form winter so it starts out fairly short in the spring. Oklahoma has been fairly slow growing and is still under 3 feet high. Another spotter but it does bloom well. It also needs deep pruning in the spring from die back. Dainty Bess gets about 5 X 5 and blooms best in the spring but does give me a few blooms all season. She can spot too though. This one is cane hardier and rarely needs much more than tip pruning in the spring.

To know for sure, you could leave the plant in the pot (ie, not plant it right a way) and place the spot in this location. Then observe how the leaves react to the sun during the worst part of the summer. If you see the leaves turning all yellowish (including the leaf veins) or whiteish, that is not a good place so move the pot elsewhere. If it turns out to be a good place, plant it when Fall arrives and temperatures are comfortable enough for digging.

My trees do that all the time, and mine are in ground. Just move the ones that are wilting into more shade during mid day hours and give them more morning sun. Morning sun is more "usable" for photosynthesis, this should help the wilting issue. Evan