Hi Drew,
I am currently looking for White blackberry varieties. Could you please contact me via email deepbluefarm@gmail.com to discuss getting some white blackberry plants from you? I’m willing to discuss some payment for your help.
Sorry I sold all my plants, I do not have any anymore. A grower in Florida was interested, and actually I traded for fig plants.
Hi Drew,
You wouldn’t happen to know a source or could point me in the right direction? I’ve been researching this for weeks and it seems the only way to get the older white varieties is from hobbyists. Any help would be beyond appreciated. Thank you for your time.
Best,
Dustin Sparr
Here’s a good source: https://www.rareseeds.com/blackberry-snowbank-white-blackberry-2-plants-ships-marchl-june-/
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Thank you I had seen rare seeds is carrying snowbank for the 2018 season, I’m looking more so for nettletons white blackberry. Anyone know a source?
Yes it is being sold as Polar Berry
This week, Indiana Berry just re-opened for business. They are taking pre-orders for 2018 delivery.
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I’m worried the Triple Crown I got from you is dead (I see no life on it). It grew great the past two years (it had sent out a cane at least 10 feet long). Maybe zero degrees was too cold for it. I am kinda shocked.
Surprisingly, PAF is growing well out of the ground after total winter die-back.
Same with your Newberry. It looks good!
Ouchita seems puny, but at least it’s alive.
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Your Osage cuttings were in a pot against my house all winter. They greened up and leafed out nicely in March and April. I got really excited they might have rooted, but alas I fear they are dead. The growth they produced has wilted. It was worth a try.
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My TC died to the ground -22 was our lowest . They are sending up new canes . So no berries on them this year .
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To bring this back to the original topic, now seems to be a good time to rate all 5 types of Thornless blackberries that I am currently growing, as I now have ripe samples berries available from all of the varieties for side by side comparison.
Strictly on a flavor basis, not counting berry size, yield, etc. I would rate them in this order:
1, Osage
2, Sweetie Pie
3, Ouachita
4, Prime Ark Freedom
5, Prime Ark Traveler
The Sweetie Pie berries in limited side by side test are sweeter than Osage, though Osage seems to have a more complex flavor, this is based upon only 2 or 3 Sweetie Pie berries, as this is a late blooming variety, with only a couple of early berries available now.
Ouachita’s are also good, with a similar ripening date to Osage, though I have to give the flavor edge to Osage, Ouachita is a bit sharper taste and not as sweet, but what I would call a more classic blackberry taste.
Which only leaves the PAF and PAT, PAF is a few days earlier than PAT, taste slightly better than PAT, though is not as firm, though in my case PAF has a MUCH higher plant failure rate than PAT, having planted 11 PAF’s over the last couple of years (6 with 100% failure, then 5 the next year) with only 2-3 surviving now, vs 10 PAT’s with 9 surviving, plus sending up more new shoots.
The first 3 on my list really are close to each other, and I could understand someone else putting them in any other order, depending on their personal selection criteria
Having written all this I see why John Clark of the University of Arkansas fame says if you are only going to plant 1 thornless blackberry, plant Osage.
Overall I am happy with my current growing selection, and just hope I get to sample more of the later ripening Sweetie Pies before SWD hits this year. Though I have also planted a single (free) Triple Crown this year, and may also try one more next year, perhaps Von from the University of NC program, as it has a reputation of having smaller seeds.
For first ripening dates here in western Louisiana I had my first ripe PAF around April 26, with the first PAT a couple of days later, followed by Ouachita, and Osage, and finally the very first of the Sweetie Pies yesterday on May 18, as the last of the PAF’s are starting to ripen here.
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Here are my Kiowa and Osage that I picked today. The Kiowa are much larger and to be honest I think they might taste a bit sweeter but they both have a similar taste. I like them straight off the bush but I prefer them after they have been in the fridge overnight a bit better.
I am planning on making a cobbler this weekend.
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Thanks for posting, in your opinion how is the flavor of Kiowa other than sweetness? I am growing Prime Ark Freedom, Prime Ark Traveler, Ouachita, Osage, and Sweetie Pie thornless blackberries. Of these Sweetie Pie is the sweetest, slightly sweeter than Osage, but I find Osage has a superior, more complex flavor.
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They both taste great to me…very similar but with the Kiowa twice the size you definitely get more bang for your buck.
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‘Best Thornless Blackberry’ thread…Kiowa may be good but it is not thornless. Just saying…I have grown them before and the berries are the largest I have ever grown or seen. Flavor was typical of Eastern Blackberries.
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No it can take that. Last fall we had a quick deep freeze. I lost 2 fig trees, Many were damaged.1 mulberry. I did loss some bramble canes too. All looked well till this spring. It may have got caught not ready for the temps. bad luck. Funny because I pulled mine out and it keeps coming up, still is. I found a small piece of cane that rooted. Take a primocane at the end of the season. Cut it into 20 pieces. Bury the pieces, you will have 20 plants start to come up next spring. I’m going to try that, as I did find a number of rooted canes, not just root suckers.
Maybe you could send me a start of TC if you get any.
My sole plant - a biggun donated by BobVance - unexpectedly bit the dust after what seemed like a Banner Year of a growing season.
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I could, but it could be Navajo, or Natchez. They were all close together.
It is very strange it died? A number of plants keep popping up, so no problem sending.
Don’t worry about it. I would want to make sure I have the genuine article cuz of my OCD and all. Thanks anyway!
It would be hard to tell Navajo from Triple Crown. Natchez has such huge berries, it would be easy. Not only does Navajo looks just like triple crown except it does not grow so much, it tastes just like it too. I can’t tell them apart.