What will this blackberry need?

Question

On a whim, I bought a pair of plants for my container garden. They were labelled raspberry and blackberry; however, I'm not certain about the blackberry plant. The blackberry that used to grow by my old house looked a lot more like the raspberry than the blackberry I just bought:

(Now that I look at it again that's a terrible photo. I can take a better one if you want.)

Obviously that raspberry plant is going to want a trellis, and they'll both need bigger pots. But will the blackberry also want a trellis? Or will it grow into more of a bush shape?

Answer 1

When you plant them, be sure that they are no deeper than they were before. Use a porous, well drained potting mix, and water deeply. The blackberry is going to need a trellis, as well as the raspberry. You should use no less than 25 gallons of soil for each plant in the permanent container, but you can gradually get there if you want, by repotting into a pot one size larger every couple months during the growing season until you reach full size. You should also fertilize every other week with a balanced fruit and flower fertilizer (like 12-14-10).