Blackberry Prime Ark Freedom: features of cultivation and care

Variety description

According to those domestic gardeners who were lucky enough to get this variety in their collection, the berries have a pleasant and delicate taste and reach large sizes – up to 9 grams each. All remontant blackberries cannot boast of a variety with the best taste. Variety “Prime Ark Freedom” forms a medium-sized, self-pollinating bush that is able to produce ovaries and bear fruit even in dry, hot summers. The plant is completely devoid of thorns, unlike some of its predecessors (for example, the Prime Arc 45 variety).

Characterization

The main characteristics of the blackberry “Prime Ark Freedom” include the following:

• remontant mid-season variety with high yield (up to 7 kg per square meter);
• shoots are characterized by the absence of sharp thorns, which greatly facilitates the harvesting process;
• blackberries are large, reach a weight of 9 grams each, with excellent taste;
• the fruits are distinguished by good transport ability – the berries retain their presentation for a long time;
• a variety with medium winter hardiness – able to withstand frosts down to -14 degrees.

Peculiarities of growing

The variety is great for those regions that have a warm climate. In our latitudes, such blackberries are best suited for growing in protected greenhouses. The only exception can be Prime Ark 45, which needs shelter for the winter only for the root system – all shoots from plants of this variety are cut off in the fall.

Such a quality as remontance provides gardeners with a wide choice of ways to grow varieties of the Ark group. Of course, you will have to tinker with the shelter of the shoots (as already mentioned, with the exception of the 45th variety), but on the other hand, the first fruits on the bushes will appear by the beginning of summer, and the second wave of fruiting will arrive in August. But you can use another method of growing such blackberries: just prune all the shoots without exception. In this case, the bushes will please you with a harvest once per season (this applies to all varieties of the Ark group, including the 45th), but much less labor will be required.

The culture is propagated by root cuttings, therefore, if desired, a whole plantation of a picturesque shrub can be formed in a relatively short time.

Care

The main condition for the normal development of culture is the obligatory shelter of plants for the winter – otherwise the overseas guest will not be able to survive the harsh winter. Otherwise, blackberry bushes belonging to the Ark group (the 45th is no exception) need agrotechnical manipulations that are standard for all other crop varieties: loosening the soil, regular watering as needed, feeding and, of course, resisting possible diseases and pests .

Diseases and pests

Blackberry bushes of this variety are highly resistant to diseases, and are almost never affected by pests – you do not need to inspect each lash 45 times a day. But still, it is better not to allow excessive waterlogging of the soil (in order to prevent rotting of the root system), carefully cover the plants for the winter (harmful infectious microorganisms can develop on frozen shoots), regularly fight weeds (they are often a favorite habitat for harmful insects).

If it was not possible to prevent freezing, just get rid of the affected areas of the plant.

The culture of this variety has appeared relatively recently on the domestic horizon, respectively, so far it has been little studied. But the results that have already been obtained eloquently testify that such a berry is able to outshine any of those that have long been well known to us. As they say, foreign breeders do not eat their bread for nothing. We are sure that in a few years the tasty, fragrant black berry, growing on smooth shoots, will become a permanent resident of every garden.

Video “About Blackberry Prime Ark Freedom”

Check out a small review of the Prime Ark Freedom blackberry. From the video you will learn about the benefits of the variety.