More Blackberry Plants by using Suckers

A very easy way to add more blackberry plants to your garden is to let them do the work for you. Blackberry plants will send out roots under the soil that will spread out and send up suckers. These are new blackberry plants that will begin growing in that area. If they come up in an area that is good for your row or garden then you’re all set! If they pop up outside the row or garden then you have a few options.

1. Dig them up and transplant to another area of the row or garden.
2. Transplant them to a pot and grow them in containers.
3. Give them away to family, friends or neighbors.

I’ve found tip layering to be the most successful way for me to propagate blackberry plants.

Below listed in order are the ways I find to be most successful for propagating blackberries:

1. Tip layering also called tip rooting. I do this most often and it is very simple. Place the tip of a cane in a small cup or pot and cover it with soil. In 4 weeks you can cut it from the main plant and hand it to someone else to plant in their own garden.

2. Blackberry suckers. Dig up the suckers and move them to a pot. Try to keep as much of the roots as you can. Make sure they get sufficient water after transplanting so they can grow their roots.

3. Serpentine layering. This works with trailing varieties of blackberries as they are easy to bend down into pots and over again to several more pots with a single cane.

4. Root cuttings. I’ve had some success with root cuttings but not as much as the top 3.

5. Cane cuttings. I have tried this method several times but have not had any success. I’ve tried keeping the cuttings indoors and outdoors in the shade. I’ve also tried keeping moisture in soil and misting the leaves but have yet to find the right combo to keep them alive. Thankfully, the other 4 methods work well for me!

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Plant Bare Root Raspberries and Build V-Trellis

Planting Bare Root Raspberries and building a V trellis

Watch the video above on planting bare root raspberries and how to build a simple inexpensive V trellis as well as some lessons learned in the process.

Grow Food Vertically with 3 Types of Support

Grow Vertically with 3 Types of Support

Here are 3 ways to help grow and support vertical growing in the garden.
1. Hammock
Use a wide piece of hose or stocking to create a simple hammock to hold watermelon and cantaloupe on your trellis.
2. Inside mesh bags, hose or stockings.
You can reuse the mesh bags that fruit came in from the store or hose to stockings to keep fruit up off the ground and on the trellis.
3. Cross method.
Use 2 or more pieces of hose or stockings to create a hammock crossing over each other to hold larger fruit in place like watermelon. You can also use an old t-shirt as an alternative method for larger fruit like watermelon.

Grow Avocado Tree from Seed Part 2

Grow Avocado Tree from Seed

Spring Garden Tour March 2022 in 4K video

Spring Garden Tour March 2022 in 4K video

Texas Snow Storm

Texas Snow Storm

We had snow twice in 2021 and I wasn’t sure my garden would survive. I had newly tip layered blackberry plants in small pots now covered in snow. I also had new apple trees and a strawberry patch to protect. I used clear plastic containers to make some mini green houses to protect my celery and onion plants and this worked well. Check out the video above to see how it all worked out including the before and after. 

Strawberry Propagation – Propagate Easily with Runners

Strawberry Plants Free and Easy with Propagation by Runners

Easy way to get more strawberry plants and free is by using runners. I have tried planting strawberry seeds and it takes much longer than you may want to wait. I’ve found the easiest way is to get some bare root strawberry plants and then when they send out runners – you can propagate them directly into small containers. Simple and fast!

Germinate Seeds Faster

How to Germinate Seeds Fast

How to germinate seeds fast.
I’ve found that simply peeling the seed coating makes the seeds germinate faster. I’ve done this will several seeds including avocado, lemon, apple, and peaches. I use the paper towel method to start them and the ones that have been peeled start the process faster than those that have not. This saves me time when planting seeds as I’ll know which ones are ready several days sooner. See the video above.

Free Blackberry Plants with Tip Layering

Tip Layering Blackberry Plants Into Containers

You can easily propagate your blackberry plants by tip layering them. Also called tip rooting – I like to do this directly into small plastic cups making it easy to verify that the roots are growing and then share with others! I reuse a plastic container and drill a few holes in the bottom for drainage. Take a blackberry (or raspberry) cane and bring it down and bury the tip about 2-3 inches into the middle of the cup. Cover with a rock on top to keep it in place. Check back in about 3 weeks to see the roots along the bottom. To separate, go back up the cane leaving at least 3 or 4 nodes of leaves and cut. Now you can transplant this to another area of your garden or simply give the cup to family or friends that want to grow their own!

Serpentine Layering for Blackberry Plants

Serpentine Layering of Blackberry Plants

Serpentine Layering is one of the two ways I propagate my blackberry and raspberry plants. Trailing varieties work best as they are easier to layer in the manner. I take a cane that easily bends down to a pot and I lay it across and bury the center of the cane. As it grows, usually about another week or 2 then I bring it over to another pot and repeat the process. The most I’ve gotten is 7 new plants from a single serpentine layered cane!