Berries

In January 2001, blackberries, boysenberries, blueberries, raspberry, and other berries were planted by Master Gardeners. Drip irrigation was then installed and an 8-inch layer of mulch was applied.

Most of the blueberries grown here are the Southern Highbush type because they have been hybridized to be more heat tolerant and to require less winter chilling. Northern Highbush blueberries are the most widely planted blueberry in the northern U.S., but generally require 800 chilling hours for proper dormancy. There are two Northern Highbush blueberry varieties at the far end of the berry patch that are doing well in our mild winters and hot summers.

Although most Highbush varieties are self-pollinating, berries will be larger if two or more varieties are planted together.

Blueberries grow best in well-drained soil that is very acidic (4.5 to 5.5 pH). Here, soil sulfur was incorporated before planting to acidify the soil, and we added additional soil sulfur 5 years later after the soil pH rose to 5.5.

Raspberry Shade Cover

Raspberries prefer afternoon shade in the Sacramento area, although two of our varieties, Bababerry and Oregon 1030, were developed to do well in full sun in hot summer areas.

Summer shade was created by hanging shade cloth over the trellis, and remove it in the fall. The raspberry plants grow well under the shade and do not get sunburned except for leaves on canes that grow beyond the shelter. There is good fruit set even with the shade cloth.

Check out the Workshop Schedule to attend workshops on growing and maintaining berries.

Resources:

Growing Blueberries in the Sacramento Region (PDF, 135kb)

Growing Cane Berries in the Sacramento Region (PDF, 100kb)

Berry blogs

Pollination Issues in Blackberry
Posted 5/23/2012 - The pictures below are of mis-shapen fruit from two commercial blackberry plantings (one cultivar...

Sap Feeding Beetles on Strawberry
Posted 5/5/2012 - The pictures below are of a species of sap feeding beetles (Family Nitidulidae) found in one...

Round Up (Glyphosate) Damage in Raspberry
Posted 4/27/2012 - This comes up a couple of times every year so it is worth reviewing and certainly adds value to our...