Hi. I have lots of questions on brambles......... let me start with a complaint. My neighbor down the street has some red-caps, and they are HUGE, but alas, he has let many of the ripe berries go to waste!!! I hate waste! ....... anyways poor me, started my set of red-caps from a cane I got from about 50 miles away about 5 years ago. I have several canes now, but they do not produce anywhere near the size of berry his does!!! ...... I am going to try to get some of his new canes next year (either by me buying or his pity for me). What can I do to make my red-caps produce bigger berries like his? Thx. Bob
Hello, Well, two things seem to give more and larger fruits for me: A bit of manure pellets with a compost mulch in the winter and more importantly, a proper method of pruning and managing. I organized my plants on a trellis, which makes it easier for me to manage and harvest. Air can blow through more easily as well. When the buds begin to flower I have given the plants a good soaking with "tea" made from horse manure and canal water. I just let this concoction sit and soak in a bucket all summer long using it to feed toms, runner beans and a host of other veggies and flowers. I put back the same amount of water that I used after feeding my plants so that there will always be enough. Some years I add some EM to this "tea" as well. I have always had great success harvesting far more berries than I could ever use. After helping others on our allotment complex, I wrote a little piece on how I do this and placed it on my website, if you care to look sometime. Success, Sjoerd
They grow wild here (don't hit me!) so I suspect they like an acid soil, and they always seem to grow best in dappled sunlight. And seems I always find them, fat and healthy, with bear scat around, don't know if that's a "cause" or "effect", lol!
