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Gardening with Allen Wilson: Berries best when space is limited

By Allen Wilson
Published: March 14, 2020, 6:05am

I would like to grow fruit in my back yard but my space is limited. Would berries be a good choice for home fruit production?

We have an opportunity to grow a lot of fruit in our own home gardens in the Pacific Northwest. However, with shrinking yard sizes, the space available to grow fruit trees is more limited. Berries and other small fruits can be worked into our ornamental landscapes much more easily.

Blueberries especially work well because their growth shape make them excellent ornamental shrubs. Different size varieties can be chosen to fit available space.

Strawberries also fit well in the ornamental landscape because they can be used as a ground cover.

Both raspberries and blackberries need support. Raspberries grow upright and need horizontal support. Two to 3 double rows of twine on each side of plants will usually suffice. Blackberries also need horizontal support, but need to be placed or trained along support wires.

Blueberries, raspberries and blackberries each have multiple varieties with a range of harvest periods. Planting two or more varieties with different harvest periods will increase the total harvest. With blackberries you have the choice between varieties with or without thorns. With raspberries you have a choice of red, black and yellow fruited varieties.

A new group of dwarf blueberry, blackberry and raspberry varieties has become available for planting in containers. These bushel and berry varieties will be available in full service nurseries and online this spring. These varieties can also be used as substitutes for dwarf ornamental shrubs.

Strawberry varieties range from those that produce a heavy crop over about three weeks in June or produce a more limited harvest over the full season. In my experience, the day-neutral varieties such as Tristar, Seascape and Albion are best for most home gardeners because they produce continuously all summer and into the fall.

Other small fruits that can be grown in our area include currant, gooseberry, cranberry, honeyberry, goji berry and aronia.

A good source for all kinds of fruit is Raintree Nursery (raintreenursery.com) in Morton.

Berries grow best with full sun. However, most will produce a decent yield with a minimum half day of direct sun. For best production, good soil preparation is important.

All berries will thrive much better with lots of organic matter in the soil. Incorporate 3 inches of bark dust or other compost before planting.

Add bark to established plants so there is always at least an inch of mulch at all times.

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