Brambles, such as raspberries and blackberries, can provide delicious berries from late June through late fall.

Brambles have perennial root systems, and stands can produce for 10 – 12 years. Most bramble stands will continue to fruit even with minimal management, but can form thickets that are hard to manage.

Bramble canes will live for 1 year on primocane-fruiting varieties. Primocane-fruiting varieties are also known as fall-fruiting. They will produce one harvest a year.

Canes live for 2 years on floricane-fruiting varieties. Floricane-fruiting varieties are also known as summer-fruiting varieties. Some floricane-fruiting varieties will produce 2 harvests, one in the fall of their first year and one in the summer of their second year.

After the canes are finished fruiting, they will remain on the bush and make it difficult to reach through the bush. This is especially true for thorny varieties. A bramble patch that has formed a thicket can incubate pests and diseases that will spread to other berry crops. Two examples are june beetles (Popillia japonica) and spotted wing drosophila (SWD) (Drosophila suzukii). 

Because bramble canes have a shorter lifespan than the roots, a patch of brambles that has gone totally wild can be completely mowed down in late autumn and allowed to start again in the next year. If this patch consists of floricane-fruiting varieties, a partial harvest can be preserved by mowing down half of the patch one year, and the other half in the following year.

A useful reference for selecting a bramble pruning approach is this comparison of bramble pruning systems.

Bramble Pruning Essentials

• Dead and diseased branches are removed at the base at any time of year. This prevents spread of disease and pests, and improves aeration.
• Branches that are done fruiting are removed at 3-4 inches above the base in early spring and late autumn.
• New branches are pinched back 3-4 inches when they are 1.5 – 2 feet tall in spring or early summer. This prevents the branches from dropping to the ground and rooting at the tips.
• New canes are removed belowground using a shovel or tiller any time they emerge in an area where they are not desired. This prevents a thicket from forming.

Bramble plantings should be between 1-2 feet wide to keep the thicket manageable.

Brambles will grow best when planted along a fence or other scaffolding system. At the same time, brambles should not be planted alongside other crops, such as fruit trees or vegetable plantings. The root systems will compete for nutrients.

Trellis Systems

Trellising brambles will help you improve yields in several ways. The right trellising system for any operation will do the following:

• Prevent formation of a thicket,
• Expose ripe fruit,
• Improve air flow,
• Expose new canes,
• Facilitate easier pinching and pruning,
• Serve as a source of profit,
• Save time.

Compare different trellising systems at this link, courtesy of North Carolina State Extension.

It is easiest to install a trellis system before planting brambles. The next easiest option is to install a trellis system over a mowed-down patch of brambles.

Variety Selection for Brambles

Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD) are extremely likely to infest fall-fruiting brambles. To maximize yields on fall-fruiting brambles, invest in exclusion netting and a trellis system. Be ready to pick fruit as soon as they are ripe and have a processing procedure ready if you are not able to sell it all fresh. Summer-fruiting brambles, also known as floricane-fruiting varieties, will produce fruit before SWD populations are very high.

See the nursery guide for a list of brambles available to order online. The guide lists raspberries separately, and lists blackberries and other brambles in the section “blackberries, etc.”.

Site Preparation for a Bramble Planting

Brambles do best in well-drained soils that are are regularly wetted. Brambles will not tolerate standing water in the root zone. If the site you selected for a bramble planting has poor drainage, consider installing tile drainage or elevating the plants on raised beds.

Remove any wild brambles adjacent to the new planting to prevent disease spread.

Useful references:

North Carolina State Extension: Trellis Systems

Cornell Cooperative Extension: 2021 Organic and IPM Production Guide for Brambles

Cornell Cooperative Extension: Pruning Raspberries and Blackberries

Cornell Cooperative Extension: Bramble Production Resources