I had Friday-only market last year, sorry I don't remember what days I picked but I would think Wed at the latest. Are they cultivated or wild? I think the wild berries are firmer and hold a little better. Of course get them in fridge ASAP after picking, don't wash them or they'll mold.

I do a lot of canning so I'd make jam/jelly or freeze the berries from the beginning of the week. My berries were so prolific (esp. in 2010) that I had to pick every day.

I asked about raspberries last year - of course they're more fragile, but boulderbelt had good advice. I'm sure there are some varieties that are firmer - hopefully the Killarney and Encore I planted this year will be good for market next year (though I don't know how many I'll get with only 5 plants of each).

Here is a link that might be useful: Raspberries for market

Thanks for the tips and the link to Boulderbelts helpful comments and photo. The berries are Olallie berries, they were bred in Oregon but have a reputation for doing better in California. I have them trellised. It would be a nightmare not to control these. The longest, and thorny, primocanes are already near 10 feet long and I have not started a real harvest yet.

The plants are loaded and as with all firsts... I will be happy to meet low expectations for sales at market but with the nicest berries . Last year we got about 100 pounds and gave them away and froze them. This year we might get 200 pounds or more from a 50' row. I planted another longer row and have 15 plants in pots to put in next early spring. We sprobably should get a variety the matures later too.

We have a chest freezer and put stuff in it as the year progresses. No canning yet.

Good luck with your berries too! It looks like you will be busy!

Blackberries are pretty durable but always require refrigeration. If the conditions are right, you can always pick a couple days in advance w/no loss of quality. We try to harvest all berries in the evening and immediately put them in refrigeration after cleaning them. We try to presell as many as possible before we pick. Blackberries can handle transport from containers pretty well. We use plastic boxes strapped to us (we got these from Indiana Berry)so we have both hands free. When one is filled adequately, we just strap on another and keep picking. Our berries are well pruned, trellised, and thornless; so picking is pretty easy--altho we have reserved a few wild berries on our property. All of our berries are sold in recycled clamshells by the pt and qt--sometimes 1/2 pts as well. We also use gallon ice cream buckets. Some vendors use gallon bags and have no problems selling them that way. I personally would not do this unless the customer was going to process or freeze them immediately.

Red raspberries and dewberries are extremely fragile. Black raspberries are a little hardier. We'll pick these at the last possible moment, pick in smaller containers,refrigerate, and sell ASAP. Almost all of these are presold. Then again, these are our favorite fruit. If there is an excess, we'll just freeze these up for ourselves. We do all of our jam and juice making in the winter when it's cold out and we have more time.

Gooseberries, currants, blueberries, and grapes are pretty tough and can handle larger containers and keep very well if refrigerated properly.

O.K. Thank your, Brook. Mine have All three ancestors Raspberry, blackberry and Dewberry. They are pretty fragile with that, I guess. From last years experience I don't think that these should be handled much. Picking straight into half pints seems safest. Larger quantities with the caveat that they are great tasting but probably for recipes.

How have you pre-sold the berries,Brook? To individuals, restaurants, or people who are committed to taking them at a FM?
It looks like any reasonable amount of decent berries will sell at our markets and mine are earliest for blackberries.

Rustico, yes to all of your questions. I'll put out an email to customers announcing the ripening berries, call up the restaurants, and then pick and deliver them when they're ready. I don't have much fridge space and need to move them quickly.

Do you prune your berries? If they are 10 feet long, you might consider shortening them. You'll also increase production as they will then send out long laterals, which will also need pruned. This is where fruit develops. The difference between pruned and unpruned is staggering. Most of my berries are Triple Crown, a semi trailing variety. The top wire of my trellis is 6 feet high. I'll let the main cane get a little above the wire then tip it. When the laterals then take off, I'll weave them along the wires for support, eventually tipping these as well. Erect varieties are a breeze to take care of in comparison, but they need pruned as well to develop those laterals. Black raspberries do too.

Thanks, Brook,

I do top my berries but not until I weave them laterally on the trellis. The primocanes go to the top wire which is at 5' down to the lower wire at 3' and then back up,Then the smaller laterals off the canes are stopped at 12"-18" as the year goes on. then I top them. Something like that anyway, depending on cooperation of the cane. In theory I will remove some primocanes but it hasn't really been necessary.

Wow brookw, 5 of the 15 canes I planted were Triple Crown and they're really taking off. I planted half a row of them in a 24-ft long row with 5 Killarney raspberries (that aren't flourishing as much but at least 4/5 seem to be alive). I really wanted to put each variety in a separate row but didn't have enough time and soil to make 3 rows right then.

They're spaced roughly 2 ft apart - 10 plants and the ones on the ends are really close to the ends (maybe 1 ft away) - should I move them ASAP? Kind of hate to, don't want to lose them.

Thanks for the comments. All is going well with the Berries.
We harvested Wednesday and Friday before the Market and there was virtually no difference in quality. We are going to pick Monday, treating a good friend to a passing through of the vines, but I'll put a til or two up and see how they look for market.

One thing I am doing is washing the berries on the plants a day before picking...just a light spray. They dry very quickly and I enjoy knowing most of the bird residue and dust are off of those that we pick the next day.

Now my only problem is that I wish there were more!

Ajsmama,

Those TC's will overwhelm those raspberries, I'm afraid. My TC's are 5 ft apart, and they should have been at least 6. By the time they're 3 years old, they will be massive. I have 2 200 ft rows, 10 feet between them. I keep them within the rows just by mowing them down. Raspberries can be planted a couple feet apart but not blackberries. My raspberries have been very disease prone; and as much as we love them, I'm not seeing them as a viable market crop.

Gee, maybe I should pull the Killarnies out of that row and plant them with the Encore the next row over. Poor things have been through the mill though - 1 looks dead, 2 more just have tiny sprouts at the base, 1 has 1 leaf bud and the other is the only only leafing out. I'm afraid if I move them they'll all die.

If I DO decide to move the raspberries, can I just leave the TC planted where they are at the end of the row, and they'll fill in, or should I move every other one to space them 5-6 ft apart?

They're in mounded beds since we have so much ledge (and so little topsoil) around the house - will spreading outside the rows be much of a problem? 1 end of the row is very close to our blueberries.

Thanks

TC are doing great, don't appear to sucker though the raspberries are suckering (including the 1 Killarney I thought was dead). Looks like we had 1 dead Encore though.

On suckering: Triple Crown will root anywhere it sets down a tip of a cane, as well as spread by sprouting up, though I get more sprouts from letting my canes get too long before trellising them than from suckering. Either way they are relatively easy to pull out if you have loose soils. One large "U-pick" farm local to us prunes them into a hedge (with guide wires inside), about 3' wide at the bottom, 2' at the top about 6' high. They have a double row stretching between the two main roads, like the beginning to the world's largest maze, probably 1/2 mile long...you can't see where it ends, actually--just amazing!

I bought ONE plant years ago for my home. We only started at market last year, added a 25' row to our existing 12', and already will have berries on the new row this year. I've also given dozens away, as well as potting the suckers and selling those at market (bonus $ as long as you don't have patented varieties). Amazing plants. This year I should have enough for jam, to eat and to sell some fruit. We also added Chester Thornless to extend the season, and trial of a single plant of a new thorned variety reported to set a second, fall crop (can't recall the name right now). With hopes to have berries when nobody else does.

Great idea to rinse the plants prior to picking day--thanks for that! I'm going to need to get a second fridge if we have as many berries as I think I'm going to have.

Carrie