Well- Time to check on the blackberry vines I suppose- I wonder what they look like.
Well. That’s uh… definitely going to be enough for pie. Pie(s) maybe if I am lucky holy crap.
This… This is the first year fruiting for these canes. I already have the start of new growth canes for next year.
I’m beginning to think I better come up with some more recipes for marionberries than just pie. Cobbler? Jam?
And early birds for tasting?
First blackberry of the season.
It. Was. Delicious.
The Neanderthal Gardens 
Wow, that is impressive for the first year! I did not put any garden variety berries in yet, and probably won’t this winter either. I do not want to do it until I have the right spot where I can contain them.
I am for sure staring down “blackberrygeddon”. Just a check- once I have stripped all the ripe berries and there are no more- those fruiting canes get cut right?
Yes, but it does not need to be done right away. I like to prune them in winter like everything else. I cut the old formerly fruited canes to the ground, and at the same time, prop and trim the new canes. Some people prefer to prune the old canes to the ground when the last of the fruit is harvested from them. That supposedly concentrated more resources into the new canes, and exposed them to more sunlight. If you prefer to remove the old canes sooner than later, you must not trim the new canes until winter. If you trim them during the growing season, the sideshoots will start to grow this year, rather than start to grow and bloom next year. Some people do not bother trimming the new canes at all. Even without trimming, they bloom and produce fruit. Trimming only concentrates resources into fewer fruit. It helps if the canes are ridiculously long. (I would recommend at least removing the tip so that the new canes do not prioritize growth in the same direction when they first come out of dormancy, but instead divert resources into bloom.)
I had no idea you should prune the canes (although it makes sense!). Thank you for all the information- I will try it with my newly planted bushes this year!
If they were planted as bare root this last winter, they will only need the cane from last year cut back. By then, it will probably be dead and rotting anyway. New canes that emerged from the roots should get propped and trimmed. However, in their first year, they may not get so long that trimming is necessary. It should be obvious by the time they get pruned. Old canes can be pruned out as soon as they finish, although I prefer to wait until winter (as I mentioned above). It is a regular cycle of pruning out the old fruited canes to favor the new that will fruit later.
I am sorry for the long comment.
No need- it was very informative thank you!
I have some (not yet ripe) berries on a plant, and I am so excited! Maybe 8-10? I am not sure if it’s a raspberry or blackberry plant.
I finally planted my berry plants in the ground this year, and they already seem happier.
Will you share pics of what you make with your berries as well?