Thank for all your help. There's a lot more to growiing fruit trees than I expected the day I ordered. Brook, one problem is space. The area where I planned on planting the berries has a limited amount of room. The area itself is semi-large, 'don't have numbers,' but there's an 8x12' green house that takes quite a bit of room..The only other area they can be planted faces north w/some south and west sun, not a whole lot. Is north sufficient? Actually, I'd be happy with a pint of berries..lol. Effingham is a gorgeous town. We stopped there on the way to TN..it's quite beautiful. Effingham is farther south, a long way south. It's probably zone 5b or 6. Oregon. Actually, I considered raspberries, but the nursery was out of stock. I'm very confused. Aren't blackberry's similar to raspberries, only black in color? It's been a long time since I've eaten berries..our grocery store charges 5.99+ a pint!!! The spot I want to plant has pros and cons. The pro is, on either side of the garden are garages..in front is a fence, in back the gh. The con is, the buildings obstruct a fair amount of sun. On sunny days, the spot gets about 3 hours of direct sun. Olpea. I had doubts placing the berries in water, but we've had major storms, everyday the past week..the sun is out today though, but the earth is mud. When a plant arrives bare root, I usually soak roots a few hours...Think I made a mistake keeping the plants in water so long..it's been 2 days..but they're out now. When I Googled, some sites said most blackberries don't ship well. Roots dry to the point of death. That's what urged me to place in water..bad choice, huh? Ph was also mentioned, which is the reason I asked. But I've decided to let Mother Nature take over..they'll be planted in soil w/o amending. Frank, your berries are beautiful and so large. I've never seen berries that size. Congrats. Greg, you grow berries in containers? How are they overwiintered? Are they left outdoors or hauled in a protected area? If they can be kept outside year round, I might have better luck growing in pots. This way, I can keep them in a sunnier spot in summer, and protected in winter. You've been a great help, too. Lots of information. The ribbons are an excellent idea. I will definately keep this page and links posted for reference. Thanks so much. Grapes do well here. It took three tries, the third was a charm. I bought a Concord grape plant in a box..'8 or 9 yrs ago.' The second year little grapes formed. The following year, there were several clusters..The only problem was we never got to eat any. The birds got to them first. lol. I'm embarrassed admitting this, but I'd dug up the roots and planted an unedible plant..Hummingbird Vine. One year I planted a small patch of strawberries. Whatever type of strawberry it was, it's invasive. There are strawberry plants everywhere..lol. But w/two dogs that go wee-wee in the yard, we prefer not to eat them. I was disapponted anyway. Thought they'd have large fruit; they're medium in size. But sweet. Tasted fruit before dogs..lol BTW, TN is a beautiful state. We visited twice. Tullahoma. Unfortunately, each time was for wakes/funerals. But Tn climate is perfect. We went there in March. The weather was warm, people were planting..in IL, there was snow on the ground. lol. A big difference. Olpea..one reason I chose Apache was because it was stated it grows upright, fruits the second or third year, and doesn't take a lot of room. So, I believe you've got it...Apache grows upright, and if pruned won't grow over 10' tall. Thanks so much. One other thing. I also read blackberries shouldn't be planted where tomatoes, peppers, among a few other veggies have grown within the last three years. Since the area is dedicated to edibles, I've got both tomatoes and peppers in that section..Is this going to be a problem? What will happen? I don't understand the reason behind it. Thanks again. Toni

Actually, I am putting in blackberries next year, so I appreciate the input even if it was the wrong forum! Now I need to go look up the fruits / orchards forum.

Glenn, I like your iron trellis from the plumbing store. Hopefully, it will outlast treated lumber. But how did you fashion a closed square from threaded parts? You must have "cheated" somewhere. Larry, how far apart are your Triple Crowns? I'm currently thinking 6 feet apart for mine. But I wonder if that's overkill. I'm planning the Kiowas to be 4 feet apart. But I'm just guessing. I also got a bit worried and changed the top of my first trellis to have the complete "T" shaped top. When installing Wirevices it became clear to me how much tension would be on those wires. Although it also seems that 12-gauge wire is plenty thick and strong, when properly tensioned. I'll be using 12-gauge on the first trellis, and 9-gauge on the second. Time will tell and at least I'll learn something.

No, they don't need support. BUT, a fence line sure makes pickin' em easier. Otherwise you will be in contortions trying to get that berry that is taunting you. For one plant, I used 3 t-posts with 2 rows of wire. The center post near the base of the plant, and one several (5 to 8)ft on each side of the center post. Then as the stems/vines grew, I trained them out the wire. If you have more than one vine, plant one vine at even number posts....2, 4, 6 etc.