Blackberries are among the easiest fruits to grow at home, and their attractive berries are a welcome midsummer treat. Navaho Thornless produces an abundance of huge, juicy-sweet berries from thornless bushes that don't draw blood. Navaho is a very hardy, heavy producer you will come to rely on for an abundant crop every year. The berries are glossy, borne in large clusters, and colored a deep blue to black. Delicious right off the bush, they are also excellent for cooking and for jellies and jams. Navaho reaches 4-5 high and 3-4' wide, and is hardy to 9 below 0 degrees F in the north, and to Zone 10 in the south and west. Prefers sun. Zones 6-10.

Height: 4' to 5' Characteristics: Colorful Berries / Fruit Fragrances: None Sun Exposure: Full Sun, Mostly Sun Colors: White Resistant To: Insect, Heat, Drought Seasons of Bloom: Summer Berries Type: Shrub, Fruit Water Needs: Average, Low Theme Gardens: Cottage Fruit Colors: Black

Spread: 4' to 5' Landscape Usages: Hedges, Small Groups, Background, Woodland Border, Landscape Beds Growth Rate: Fast Foliage Color: Green Soil Needs: Ammended Clay, Average, Fertile, Humusy, Well-Drained Culinary Usages: Desserts, Cereals, Fresh Eating, Salads / Sandwiches, Jellies / Preserves USDA Zones: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Blackberry 'Navaho Thornless' Feeding Instructions

After planting Blackberries, and new growth begins in Spring, and rain or irrigation settles the soil, apply a granulated organic fertilizer at rates recommended on label. Refertilize at the same rate in May and July if rainfall or overhead irrigation has been good. Spread the fertilizer evenly over a circle 18" in diameter with the plant in the center. Repeat this same fertilization process in March and July of the second year spreading fertilizer over a circle 24" in diameter with the plant in the center. From the third season on, base the amount of fertilizer applied on the size of the bushes. Continue to increase the amount of fertilizer applied yearly until the bushes are of mature size. Spread the fertilizer evenly under and around the bushes.

Blackberry 'Navaho Thornless' Pruning Instructions

Plants usually don't require pruning the first year. Prune out fruiting canes as soon as berries are harvested each summer, and select replacement canes for the following year.

Blackberry 'Navaho Thornless' Pest Instructions

Blackberry bushes may be left to be sprayed on an "as needed" basis. Blackberries are subject to a number of different disease and insect pests, depending on region. Contact your cooperative extension office for information on managing pests in your area.