Locating plants that work in beds and borders or even patio pots can be a challenge. However, the berries will be happy in a variety of environments and they will share their pollen with many of the flowers in and around your yard as well as other fruits.
Perhaps one of the easiest fruits to grow, these will thrive in nearly any condition. You can plant them in many different soil types and they don’t mind cold winters or hot summers.
Strawberries have two main categories. Summer fruit and perpetual fruit. There is also the alpine strawberry that has tiny sweet fruits. This small white flower makes a perfect decoration for a rockery, flower bed edging, hanging baskets and more.
The summer fruit strawberries will produce the largest of the strawberry fruits. They will also yield the most strawberries. They are available from most garden centers. Hapil is a very popular variety and will offer generous amounts of strawberries.
Perpetual berries won’t be as heavy of a crop as the summer fruit variety. They will be inexpensive in farmers market stalls. Although they don’t offer as large of fruits, they will provide a steady supply of berries over a longer period of time.
Strawberry plants can be planted as close as 14 inches apart and still thrive. You only need a hole that is large enough for their roots in order to plant them. Plant so that the crown of the plant is at soil level in order to prevent it from rotting or molding.
Easy to grow and requiring some shelter, these plants love the sun.
Two different categories will provide berries in the summer or autumn. You can enjoy raspberries for six months each year if you choose to plant both varieties.
The summer berries are larger and will produce crops very late into the season. Glen Ample and Tulameen are excellent varieties. Autumn Bliss and Joan J Will offer you berries during the autumn months.
Your raspberries are going to require support. You can stretch a wire across posts and prop the plants up. Smaller gardens can use a single post in the ground or even a container with a few plants around a post.
Ideal as container plants, these aren’t as hardy as the others. You may wish to move the planters around and keep them under cover and wrap them well in the winter or bring them inside.
Bluecrop are hardy and a mid season berry that produce delicious light blue colored berries during July and spring. The white flowers are an ideal addition to any garden.
When planting in the garden they require acidic soil and well drained sheltered areas. Very decorative they provide vivid autumn foliage and then attractive summer flowers to adorn your garden. You should plant them November to March unless your ground is frozen.
The Loch Ness are compact and thornless and will produce large, glossy blackberries starting mid August. A high yielding plant, they are one of the favorite varieties chosen by commercial blackberry growers.
Wild blackberries aren’t the same as the commercial varieties. The commercial varieties are bred specifically to produce large sweet fruits. They require lots of room to spread and grow but they’re not picky about the kind of soil. They love the sun but will still thrive in the shade.
These can be placed in virtually any soil, and still thrive and produce plenty of fruit. However, if you pay attention to them, you’ll have a bumper crop.
The do the best in well sheltered and well drained soils. They don’t mind partial shade but love the sun. Invicta is an excellent variety and produces plenty of delicious pale green berries used in desserts and other jams.
Berries are fun to grow, easy and delicious. You can enjoy the delight of growing your own berries and eating from your own garden all summer long and well into Autumn.
Amy Rice writes about garden plants, when not writing she enjoys horse riding with her daughter.