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For those who love blackberries but are wary of planting in their garden due to the perceived difficulties involved in caring for this difficult crop, Scottish breeders created a wonderful raspberry-blackberry hybrid 50 years ago that even the most inexperienced novice gardener can grow. Blackberry “Tyberry”, or rather, blackberry, has a wonderful taste, charming appearance, high yield and ease of care.
Variety description
The hybrid “Tayberry” (or “Tayberry”) in Western Europe and North America is used for the industrial cultivation of vitamin fruits. In Europe, up to 1 tons of berries are obtained from 20 hectare. When cultivating on personal and small farm plots in our climatic conditions, the harvest is smaller, but it is quite simple to grow the amount necessary for the needs of your family or for a quick sale on the market.
The yield of one bush, depending on its age and volume, is from 3 to 5 kg. Of course, modern blackberry varieties give a much larger yield, but the taste of large ruby uXNUMXbuXNUMXbberries, which is described as sweet raspberry with a wonderful fruity aftertaste, explains the delight of those who have already planted a bush of this raspberry-blackberry hybrid on their plot.
The creeping shoots of the Tayberry raspberry grow up to 3 meters, and if they are not limited, then up to 5 meters. They are strong and flexible, they can easily be braided onto a wire, and then removed in the fall, rolled up for harvesting for the winter. Fruiting shoots of the second year acquire a light burgundy color, and young ones become green. The branches are covered with small but numerous thorns, they look more like soft crimson thorns than large and sharp blackberry thorns.
The bush gives only 3-4 replacement shoots in the first year, later – up to 6 pieces. Ruby-red fruits are elongated, they grow up to 5 cm long and have a weight of 7-10 g. Technical maturity is evidenced by a bright burgundy (ruby) color, after a few days it becomes darker and fully ripe. This raspberry hybrid compares favorably with blackberries – at the stage of full ripening, the berries reveal all the richness of taste and aroma. Fruiting lasts a month, usually starting in mid-June.
The bush looks very decorative at all stages of growth: its slightly corrugated trifoliate leaves are dark green in color, large white flowers are a pale pink hue, the fruits become brighter every day. The berries are easy to pick, despite the thorny branches, they do not hide under the leaves, but there is a certain danger here – they can bake in too hot the sun. The berries are quite soft, suitable for transportation, perfectly preserved for several days.
It is very important that this blackberry is resistant to the main diseases of its parents and easily adapts to the conditions of any climate. Her winter hardiness is average, it is advisable to cover the bush even in the southern regions, because without snow the entire above-ground part of the bush can freeze. The disadvantages of this raspberry-blackberry hybrid are considered to be a small crop and thorns.
British breeders 30 years ago created another hybrid, the characteristics of which largely coincide with the “Tyberry”, called it “Buckingham Tyberry”. This new blackberry-raspberry hybrid has no thorns, bears fruit for up to 6 weeks, its berries are somewhat sourer than the thorny relative, but they grow up to 8 cm and gain 15 g of weight. The yield of the new hybrid also increased.
Video «Raspberry Tyberry»
Watch an overview of the raspberry-blackberry hybrid “Tyberry” and learn more about its characteristics, as well as the experience of growing it.
Preparing for planting
It is possible to plant a blackberry on the site in spring or autumn. A seedling can be taken even in the middle of summer, but more often it is planted in a permanent place of growth in the spring, as soon as the soil allows, or in the fall after the end of the growing season. It is advisable to prepare the soil in advance. This hybrid is not very demanding on its composition, but in order to grow a healthy bush and get a rich harvest, it is advisable to plant it in nutritious loam. So if planting a seedling is expected in the spring, already in the fall after harvesting, it is worth finding an open place protected from drafts, clearing the area of grass, digging a shovel to the depth of a bayonet, picking out all the roots, stones, debris. Peat or sand should be added to heavy soil for better breathability. If at this place there is a risk of accumulation of melt water or stagnation of water for another reason, it is worth preparing drainage.
You can apply fertilizer to the entire area of the site, especially if you plan to plant several bushes or 1 square meter for one bush. They usually add several buckets of compost or humus, add lime to acidic soil (this hybrid, like its parents, prefers neutral soil) or just wood ash. Or you can dig a hole (for each bush), put fertilizer in it, sprinkle it with earth and leave it until spring. During spring planting, fertilizers are immediately laid in the pits, you just need to make sure that there is a layer of earth between them and the roots, otherwise the roots can get burned.
Landing technology
When choosing planting material, you should carefully examine the roots and shoots – they must be alive, not dried out, without damage. It is advisable to keep the roots in the ground, with an earthy clod and lower them into a hole.
A hole is dug 0,5 m in diameter and depth, the seedling is lowered a couple of centimeters lower than it grew before, but the root collar must remain above the ground.
Several bushes are planted in rows, leaving up to 2 m of free space between them, between plants in a row it is worth leaving gaps of up to 1,5 m. The place should be open, but ideal conditions, especially if hot summers are expected, are maximum sunlight in the morning and evening hours, and during the day it is desirable to provide partial shade.
After the roots were lowered into the prepared pit, covered with earth and watered abundantly, gardeners usually mulch the near-stem area with peat, compost, hay – this will delay the evaporation of moisture, keep the temperature, and prevent weeds from growing. The shoots are cut to a live bud, leaving 30 cm from the ground. If planting takes place in the fall, then the plant is further covered for the winter, but so that it is not very hot, otherwise the buds may swell.
Features of care
Ezhemalina, like her closest relatives, loves moisture, but not stagnant water, so watering should be sufficient, drought will add acid to the fruits, and waterlogging near the roots can lead to their decay. The earth around the stems must be loosened, but the roots must not be damaged. Weeds around the bushes should be removed in a timely manner, grass and fallen leaves should not be left, so as not to create conditions for the reproduction of pests and fungal spores – pathogens.
In the spring, before the buds come to life, winter insulation is removed, the shoots are examined, and sanitary pruning is carried out. After that, shoots are tied up on trellises. In the summer, some gardeners shorten the creeping blackberry shoots to stimulate the growth of fruit twigs, the Tayberry hybrid does not need this. The next pruning should be in the fall, when the shoots are removed from the trellises, unwound, those that bear fruit are cut off, the shoots of the first year are examined, the weak ones are removed, the good ones are shortened by a third and covered for the winter. When pruning, the bushes are normalized: in the fall, from 7 to 9 replacement shoots are left, and in the spring, those that have suffered from winter or simply the weakest are removed so that 4–6 shoots remain for fruiting. More of them will not give a larger harvest, just the berries can become smaller, and the plant itself is weaker.
It is convenient to tie the shoots with a fan – fruiting branches are fixed in one direction, and young ones in the other. Some gardeners suggest a bowl shape to prevent thickening so that all twigs, flowers and fruits get enough air and light. In the hot summer, under the scorching rays of the sun, ripe berries can cake or leak. To prevent this from happening, a net is pulled over the bush, creating partial shade. It is good if the plant is protected from too aggressive sun in the middle of the day.
Fertilize if necessary. In the spring, humus or a complex fertilizer rich in nitrogen is usually applied. Further, during flowering and fruit ripening, the plant no longer needs so much nitrogen, if top dressing is applied, then the emphasis is on potassium-containing compounds.
Reproduction
The raspberries are propagated by layering, which root easily. This hybrid does not give root offspring, except when dividing the root. You can root cuttings cut in the fall when shortening the shoots.
Diseases and pests
Ezhemalin “Tyberry” shows amazing resistance to traditional blackberry and raspberry diseases. The main pests, hungry for sweet berries, appear after its fruiting. Aphids can be a threat. It is necessary to carefully examine the shoots, if insects are found, it is necessary to urgently cut and destroy the infected parts, and treat the entire plant with an infusion of ash or tobacco. Usually it does not come to chemicals.
Video “Raspberry Buckingham Tyberry”
This video will tell you about the history of the raspberry-blackberry hybrid “Buckingham Tyberry”, as well as its benefits.
