I am in zone six , southwest missouri. I am planning on putting in a row of blackberries in spring. I have tried Kiowa and black magic and a thornless variety but non really were very productive. I prefer an erect variety that ripens early. Any suggestions?
For me, in 8A (North Georgia), Ponca has been the most vigorous and productive. I have a couple of the other UArk thornless erect varieties for cross-pollination, but they don’t seem to do quite as well.
Ponca blossomed right through a late freeze (28 F) that took out the bulk of my blueberry crop. On the other hand, winter temps are never really that cold here, so I don’t have really any winter dieback on any blackberries.
Here is a row of Ponca a few months after planting:
The same row, almost exactly a year later (last week of May / first week of June or thereabouts):
A day’s harvest (first week of June):
So far, I’ve had no issues with SWD.
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I think both Giving Grove and MU extension recommend Natchez thornless here in Missouri. The community garden is having good luck with them, so that’s what I’ll put in next year here in KC. They also note well drained soil, so you might look into raising them up a bit where you end up planting. Good luck!
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Tripple Crown is known for being very productive and good flavor… but they are a later ripening berry. Could be trouble SWD wise.
Natchez vid above… the earliest thornless Univ of Ark variety.
I prefer varieties with Thorns… agressive thorns keep my birds away… thornless blackberries here the birds get way too many.
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Choose the Best Blackberry Cultivar to Plant:
From:
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Thank you Richard. Lots of useful information on that
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Thank you for posting that video,
Ponca has one significant problem. My plants were killed outright by -3F temperatures December 22nd 2022. Plenty of plants grew back from the roots but I missed a year’s production.
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Good to know, we do get below zero here some years but usually bottom out in the single digits
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I do really like vigorous thorny growers… large berries. Have seen several youtube vids showing Kiowa being like that. I was planning on adding 3 or 4 next spring.
I wonder if the difference is heat… I am in Southern TN… just changed to Zone 7b.
I will see how they do here.
Right now I have Illini Hardy, Ouachita, Obsidian…
TNHunter
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Celestial should be the highest yielding blackberry when it is released possibly next year. Chester holds that spot at the sacrifice of poor taste and very late ripening…but it is cold hardy which leads to the late ripening.
Prime Ark Horizon should technically be listed as one of the highest yielding due to high yields on primocanes and floricanes…but its thorny and not many people discuss it. Early tipping is needed in my climate to achieve a good primocane crop…otherwise the canes will get 12-15 feet and fruit on the tips very late in the season.
Caddo fits the bill for early, high production, erect and large berry…as far as what is currently released on floricane fruiting cultivars. At the sacrifice of sweetness that Ponca has. Ponca has such short nodes that i dont think it has the potential to be high yielding.
Galaxy, Twilight, Eclipse and Triple Crown are all very similar in that they are highly productive and vigorous but are all very late ripening and not worth growing if you have SWD issues.
Here is a good table to compare and contrast east coast varieties.
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My Kiowa consistently don’t fill out all of the drupes. Like they have poor pollination but there are wild blackberries everywhere here that should pollinate them I would think
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That’s what some growers are seeing up here. Ponca seems not very winter hardy. Too bad because it is an outstanding berry.
Triple Crown is very productive, but very soft.
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Kiowa growing in the South… Louisiana.
Huge thorned canes lots of blossoms and fruit.
Year 3 berries. Plum sized.
I will try 2-3 here in southern TN and see how they do.
I have 3 Caddo started this fall… will see how they compare.
There is a guy on YT showing Kiowa berries as big as golf balls… it seems to fruit very well in some locations.
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We used to grow Kiowa and Triple crown when we lived in southwest TN. Kiowa definitely produces some enormous berries, but triple crown was a better producer for us and the flavor was significantly better. We tried growing Kiowa here in PA but they froze out the first winter. Triple crown has been doing well for us here.
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@mvfd801 … do you recall when Kiowa and TC ripened for you in Sw TN ?
Have heard TC will start to ripen mid/late July… which is peak SWD for me.
I really need BB that starts ripening early June and finishes end of June or early July.
Obsidian and Caddo may just do that. I will find out on Obsidian this next year.
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I’m sorry I don’t remember exactly, but I think it was probably in July for both of them. I will say we have some trouble with SWD getting in the later ripening crop here, so I expect you would have trouble with it there too.
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@mvfd801 … yes… i have wild blackberry all over my property and my neighbors.
Our wilds start ripening good around July 4… and continue into August … depending on rain.
When there is an abundance of wild blackberries ripening… that is when SWD is problem for me.
Once the wild BB crop is done… my SWD problem goes to minimum.
I need BB that ripen in June… or September-October.
Anyone growing Prime Ark 45 ?
Got a new OGW catalog recently.
Ripen in Sept? On first year canes.
Cut them down to ground in fall… and repeat that each.
Anyone in the south east tried PA45 and had good luck ?
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