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In recent years, domestic farmers and gardeners who grow berries for sale have increasingly paid attention to blackberries. For a long time this culture was underestimated in Our Country and neighboring countries. Finally, we also realized that blackberries have a lot of advantages over raspberries – higher yields, less susceptibility to pests and diseases. Yes, and berries are much healthier.
But due to the lack of information, small and medium-sized producers often get lost when choosing varieties. Now it is not a problem to buy blackberry seedlings, go to any online store or just visit the nearest nursery. But are all varieties suitable for commercial cultivation? Of course not! And this must be remembered when choosing seedlings. One of the “workhorses” that give berries for the market and even large wholesale is the Loch Ness blackberry.
History of breeding
Blackberry Loch Ness (Loch Ness, Loch Ness) is one of the most popular industrial varieties in Europe and America. It was created in 1990 in the UK by Dr. Derek Jennings. Lochness is a complex hybrid, the parent crops of which were European varieties of blackberries, raspberries and Logan berries.
It was Derek Jennings who identified the L1 raspberry gene responsible for large-fruitedness, thanks to which Loch Ness blackberries are large in size.
Description of berry culture
First of all, the Lochness blackberry is a very good commercial variety. It is not a dessert, although the berries are large, and the taste is pleasant. This should not be forgotten by those gardeners who scold the Loch Ness variety for its low tasting score and excessive berry density.
General idea of the variety
Blackberry Lochness forms a powerful compact bush with thornless shoots up to 4 meters high. The variety is classified as semi-erect – the lashes grow straight at first, then become thinner and lean towards the ground.
The shoots of the thornless Lochness blackberry grow quickly, form many side branches and fruit twigs. The root system is powerful. The leaves are serrated, medium in size, bright green.
The variety gives a lot of substitution shoots, and if the roots are intentionally damaged, there are enough shoots. Fruiting occurs on the lashes of the previous year. The load on the bush is large, however, not as strong as that of the Natchez blackberry.
Berries
The berries of the Loch Ness blackberry are large, glossy black, elliptical in shape, very beautiful. In many sources you can read that the fruits of the variety are one-dimensional. This point needs an explanation. Aligned berries Lochness gives from harvest to harvest. The first fruiting brings the largest blackberries – up to 10 g each. In the future, the average weight of the berries is 4-5 g. The fruits are collected in large brushes.
The taste of Loch Ness blackberries is not the best. At least gourmets and experts are not delighted – they rated it at 3,7 points. Folk connoisseurs gave the variety 2,7 points. Perhaps they tasted Lochness blackberries at the stage of technical ripeness – the degree of maturity of its berries is difficult to determine by eye. The greenish berry is sour. Fully ripe – sweet, with a pronounced sourness, pleasant to the taste, fragrant.
Loch Ness blackberries are dense, but juicy, with small seeds. They endure transportation well and are suitable for mechanized harvesting.
Characterization
The Lochness Blackberry is one of the best bred to date, if we consider the variety as an industrial crop (which it is).
Main advantages
The Loch Ness variety has good drought tolerance and can withstand frosts down to -17-20⁰ C. This means that you need to cover blackberries in all regions except the most southern ones.
The characteristic of the Lochness blackberry variety, as one of the most unpretentious, is true. But with sufficient care, its berries become tastier, and the crop can grow almost 2 times – from 15 to 25, or even 30 kg per bush.
The variety is undemanding to the soil, it can grow in all regions. Blackberry Loch Ness is popular in the Middle lane, it is often planted in the suburbs.
There are no thorns on the shoots, which greatly facilitates care. The berries are dense, well transported, suitable for mechanized and manual harvesting.
Flowering period and ripening period
The Loch Ness blackberry is a mid-late variety. It blooms at the beginning of summer, ripens – by the end of July in Ukraine and southern Our Country, in the Middle lane – 10-14 days later.
Fruiting is extended, but not excessive – 4-6 weeks. In most regions, the berries have time to ripen before frost.
Yield indicators, fruiting terms
Variety Lochness – one of the most fruitful. Even with poor agricultural practices, an adult bush produces about 15 kg of berries. The average indicator with minimal care is 20-25 kg per plant. With intensive agricultural technology, it is quite possible to collect up to 30 kg from each Loch Ness blackberry bush.
The first berries appear in the second year after planting, the third season is considered the time of entry into full fruiting. But blackberries will give 25-30 kg from a bush even later. The Loch Ness variety has a powerful root system, as it grows, so does the yield.
Scope of berries
Loch Ness blackberries are not considered dessert berries, but if harvested at full maturity, the taste will be pleasant. The fruits of this variety are perfect for freezing, all types of processing. Despite the large size of the berries, they can be dried.
Disease and pest resistance
Like the whole culture as a whole, the Lochness blackberry is resistant to attack by pests and diseases. True, treatments for preventive purposes should be carried out.
Advantages and disadvantages
The description of the Loch Ness blackberry variety shows that as an industrial crop it is close to ideal. But it does not differ in dessert taste, and is more suitable for processing than the consumption of fresh berries.
The undoubted advantages of the variety include:
- High yield – up to 30 kg with intensive care.
- The berries are large and beautiful.
- The bush forms many replacement shoots.
- Scourges grow quickly, with a large number of side branches.
- Fruits are dense, well transported.
- Mechanical harvesting is possible.
- Processed products are of high quality.
- Shoots are devoid of thorns.
- Trimming the lashes is optional.
- High resistance to adverse weather factors, diseases, pests.
- Undemanding to the composition of the soil.
- Ease of propagation of the variety.
Among the shortcomings we note:
- Mediocre fruit flavor.
- Medium-late ripening period of berries.
- The variety needs to be covered for the winter.
- In rainy or cold summers, as well as when planted in the shade, the berries gain little sugar.
- The Lochness variety contains little vitamin C compared to other blackberries.
Methods of reproduction
Loch Ness blackberries are easy to propagate by bubbling (rooting tops) and layering. With deliberate injury to the root system with a shovel bayonet, the bush gives a lot of overgrowth.
Nothing good can be expected from sowing seeds. Blackberry Lochness is a complex hybrid. Seedlings will be of interest only to breeders when creating new varieties.
A good result will give reproduction by root cuttings. But in private households it makes no sense to resort to this method. It is much easier to get several or even a dozen new plants by dropping layering or from overgrowth.
Rules of landing
Loch Ness blackberries are planted in the same way as other varieties. There is nothing difficult in this, the culture takes root well, if you choose the right time, place, and regularly water the first time.
Recommended dates
Blackberries should be planted in the spring, after the weather has warmed up and the ground has warmed up. The plant will then have time to take root before the cold weather.
In the south, planting is carried out in the fall, no later than a month before the onset of frost. Spring planting there is undesirable – warm weather can quickly give way to heat, which will destroy blackberries that have not had time to take root.
Choosing the right place
A well-lit place, always protected from the cold wind, is suitable for planting a crop. Groundwater should not come closer to the surface than 1-1,5 m.
The Lochness variety is undemanding to the composition of the soil, but it cannot be planted on sandstones. But light loams rich in organic matter are ideal.
You can not plant blackberries close to raspberries, nightshade crops or strawberries.
Soil Preparation
A planting hole for Loch Ness blackberries is dug with a diameter of 50 cm and the same depth, the top layer of soil is set aside – it is useful for preparing a fertile mixture. To do this, the soil is mixed with a bucket of humus, 50 g of potash and 150 g of phosphate fertilizers. You can add dolomite flour or crushed or ground eggshells (a source of calcium).
Sand is added to dense soils, and an additional dose of organic matter is added to carbonate soils. The soil for blackberries should be slightly acidic (5,7-6,5), if the pH is lower, dolomite flour or chalk is added, and red (horse) peat is higher.
The landing pit is 2/3 filled with the prepared mixture, filled with water, allowed to settle for at least 10-15 days.
Selection and preparation of seedlings
Seedlings need to be bought in a proven place. The Loch Ness variety does not belong to the newest, but it is quite in demand, and farms often purchase it. So that:
- We need a lot of seedlings.
- In the total mass, it is easy to slip unsuitable planting material or an unclaimed variety.
So make sure that there are no thorns on the shoots (the Lochness variety is thornless), and they themselves are flexible, with a smooth, intact bark. A distinctive feature of the blackberry is a powerful root system. In the Loch Ness variety, it is better developed than in other representatives of the culture. Do not be too lazy to smell the spine – the smell should be fresh.
Algorithm and landing scheme
The recommended planting pattern for Lochness blackberries is 2,2-3 m between the bushes, the rows should be 2,5-3 m apart from each other. Compaction on industrial plantations is up to 1,8-2 m. must be kept at least 3 m.
Blackberry planting:
- In the center of the planting hole, a small hill is made, around which the roots are straightened.
- The fertile mixture is poured gradually, constantly gently compacting it to prevent the formation of voids, but not damage the roots. The neck is deepened by 1,5-2 cm.
- After planting, the blackberries are watered abundantly. This will require at least a bucket of water.
- The soil under the bush is mulched with humus or acid (top) peat.
Culture aftercare
Growing Loch Ness blackberries will not be difficult either for beginner gardeners or on industrial plantations. The main thing is that the seedling is well rooted, and for this you need to observe the planting dates and water the bush abundantly.
Growing principles
Blackberry Lochness needs to be tied to a support. You can use any – multi-row, T or V-shaped, up to 2,5 m high. Shoots are fastened with a fan, zigzag, braided, side branches are parallel to the ground. In order not to get confused, it is better to breed fruiting lashes and young ones in different directions.
Anyone who keeps Loch Ness brambles to decorate the garden, and is not too concerned with the size of the crop, can cut the shoots as soon as they stop growing straight and start to slope towards the ground. So the variety will not need to be tied up at all. You will get a decorative bush from spring to autumn, however, you won’t even pick 15 kg of berries from it.
To get 25-30 kg of berries from Lochness blackberries, intensive feeding and regular pruning are needed.
Necessary activities
Plants need to be watered. Blackberries are moisture-loving all, the drought resistance stated in the description means one thing – this particular variety needs less water than others. So in the absence of rain, water the bush at least once a week, if the weather is hot, a little less often in cool summers.
To retain moisture, additional nutrition and protect the root system from high temperatures, mulch the soil. If you do not have humus or acid peat, use straw, grass. In extreme cases, you can cover the soil with uprooted weeds (just make sure that there are no seeds on it, otherwise you will get additional problems with weeding).
The Loch Ness variety is overloaded with berries, therefore, it requires intensive feeding. In the spring, immediately after raising the lashes to the trellis, the soil is fertilized with nitrogen (it is better to take calcium nitrate). During the period of flowering and setting of berries, a complete mineral complex that does not contain chlorine is used. During the ripening of berries, foliar top dressing with the addition of humate and chelates is useful, and root top dressing with a solution of mullein or grass infusion. In early autumn, potassium monophosphate is used.
The soil in spring and autumn around the blackberry bushes is loosened, in the season of active growth and fruiting it is covered with mulch.
shrub pruning
Fruiting shoots in the fall should be cut at ground level. Be sure to remove all broken, weak and diseased lashes.
Otherwise, pruning Lochness blackberries is a delicate matter, and causes a lot of controversy among gardeners. Shortening the tops of the main lashes makes maintenance easier and increases lateral branching. But it’s still strong. If you thicken the bush, it will be so overloaded with berries that no top dressing will help.
But it is worth shortening the side shoots – so the berries will be smaller, but it will become larger. As a result, the total yield will not suffer.
Young lashes are rationed – in the spring they leave 6-8 of the most powerful, well-wintered for fruiting, the rest are cut out.
Preparation for winter
In autumn, the Loch Ness blackberries are carefully removed from the supports (possibly with wire). The fruiting branches are removed, the young ones are laid on the ground, pinned, covered with dry corn stalks, spruce branches, and straw. Spunbond or agrofibre is laid on top.
Diseases and pests: methods of control and prevention
Gardeners’ reviews of the Loch Ness blackberry variety confirm that it rarely gets sick and is rarely affected by pests. It is only necessary in spring and autumn to treat the shoots with a preparation containing copper and not to plant raspberries, strawberries or nightshade vegetables nearby.
Conclusion
Lochness Blackberry is an excellent commercial variety. Those gardeners who grow a crop for the sale of berries can safely plant it – the fruits are large, beautiful, well transported, and care is minimal. The taste of blackberries is not so bad – pleasant, but not dessert, ordinary. But for all types of blanks, berries are ideal.
Reviews
