Are you looking for seriously delicious berries to grow this year? If so, try planting tayberries for their bountiful harvests and easy-to-maintain nature. In this article, plant expert Matt Dursum covers how to plant, grow, and care for tayberries. Tayberries are delicious, sweet, and juicy, with refreshing tartness and great texture. They’re even sweeter than loganberries and have a very berry-like flavor that almost resembles a dark blackberry wine.
Like blackberries and raspberries, they’re incredibly easy to grow in many climates throughout the US. They produce a massive harvest in mid-summer. Enjoy them raw right off the vine or use them in jams, sauces, or fruit wines. Grow these beautiful berries wherever you grow blackberries and raspberries. They’ll thrive with very little maintenance and provide tons of fresh fruit for very little effort. Let’s dive into more about these wonderful plants and their mouth-watering fruit.
What Is It?
Tayberries are a cross between blackberries and red raspberries. They share many characteristics with the two plant species. They have a sweet and tart flavor that’s hard not to adore, especially on a warm summer day. These berries grow on long canes, which are covered in sharp thorns, similar to many varieties of blackberries. The canes radiate from the central plant and are easy to control. Tayberries produce larger fruits than blackberries or raspberries, which can get to over an inch long. Because they’re more delicate than their parent species, they have almost no commercial value other than novelty jams and wines.
Characteristics
Tayberries range from red to dark purple, with darker ones tasting sweeter and red ones tangier. Tayberry plants produce fruit on 2-year-old canes. After producing fruit, these canes will naturally die back. New canes will grow from the central plant and be ready for fruiting the following year. Unlike some species of blackberries, tayberries are easy to control. They work great as natural hedges or edible border crops. Their canes will grow up to 6 feet in length, with some individuals growing larger in the right conditions. The fruits appear red to dark purple. The darker berries tend to have the most sweetness, while the red berries have higher acidity. The fruits are actually aggregate fruits, meaning they’re made up of tiny druplets, each with a seed inside. Besides their delicious fruit, these berries attract beneficial pollinators to your garden. They’re also one of the prized species on the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit list.
Native Area
Tayberries were first introduced to the world in Scotland at the Scottish Horticultural Research Institute. In 1980, horticulturist Derek Jennings crossed a European raspberry with an Aurora blackberry plant. After creating the new hybrid, he named it after the River Tay in Scotland. The plant quickly gained popularity throughout the UK. Soon, growers brought tayberries to the US, where they took off in the Pacific Northwest. Their parents originated in Europe. Other species of brambles are native throughout the world. They grow in cooler regions with heavy moisture and temperate climates. People have been eating and cultivating brambles for thousands of years as food and medicine.
Planting
Plant tayberries in organic, well-drained soil along borders or beds with other sun-loving brambles. Planting tayberries is incredibly easy and similar to raspberries and blackberries. They’re less likely to grow uncontrollably than many popular blackberry varieties. Tayberries are trailing types of brambles that grow best on trellises. Plant them with plenty of space from other individuals to avoid overcrowding. Grow them in garden beds or around your garden borders. They’ll flourish as long as the soil is well-drained and full of organic material. Plant them with other sun-loving berries or brambles for a productive edible garden.
Transplanting
Transplant starters in early spring to give roots time to settle before harvesting the next year. Transplant a healthy tayberry starter by digging a deep and wide hole in your garden bed or yard. Amend the soil underneath with organic compost. Make sure the soil is well-drained and not at the bottom of a hill where moisture can build up. Gently lift your starter from its container and place it in the hole. Be careful not to damage its root system. Make sure the crown is level with the soil top. Carefully fill the spaces with soil and cover your plant with mulch. After transplanting, water your transplant thoroughly. Keep the surrounding soil moist as they take root in their new home. After a few weeks, you should start to see new growth coming from your tayberry plants. The best time to transplant starters is in early spring when the plants are dormant. This gives them enough time to establish their root system in the new soil. Be prepared to wait a year until you can enjoy your first harvest.
How to Grow
Tayberries are easy to grow; they only need sun, space, and moisture for the best results. Growing tayberries is incredibly easy, just like blackberries and raspberries. After their first year in your garden, they’ll be easy to maintain and give you very few problems. The main trick is giving them plenty of space, light, and moisture throughout their growing season.
Light
Give tayberries space and sunlight for their thorny canes to grow, though partial shade works too. Like other brambles, tayberries thrive when they’re growing under full sun. Space them far apart from other plants, so they have enough room to grow their canes. Although they prefer full sun, they will grow fine in areas with partial shade.
Water
An overhead stream of water irrigating young plants in dappled sunlight Water tayberries weekly during growth, but avoid soggy soil to prevent root damage. Give your tayberries plenty of water throughout their growing season. Aim for a few inches of water every week, but don’t let the soil become soggy. Once you notice the fruit developing, increase the amount of water to 4 inches per week. These plants produce a lot of fruit during midsummer and appreciate the extra moisture. Although these plants love a good shower, they will succumb to root rot if they’re oversaturated. If you notice the soil becoming soggy, refrain from adding more water until it drains.
Soil
Mulch around crowns after planting to keep moisture in and block weeds from taking over.Plant these brambles in well-drained soil amended with plenty of organic matter. They prefer a soil pH that’s slightly acidic, between a pH of 5.5 to 6.5. Before planting, add plenty of organic compost to the soil mix. You can also add cow manure to the mixture to boost the nutrient content. After planting, add a thick layer of mulch to your soil around the crowns. Mulching will help lock in moisture in the soil and help keep your plants hydrated. It will also block out weeds from taking over and competing for nutrients and water.
Temperature and Humidity
Tayberries tolerate humidity well, but dry climates may need extra watering to keep them hydrated. Tayberries thrive in zones 4 through 8. They prefer areas with mild summers without extreme temperatures. They don’t mind growing in humid environments. If you live in drier regions such as Southern California, you may have to increase the amount of water you give them. These brambles produce their harvests in mid-summer, usually around July. Because of this, you won’t have to worry about late-season frosts killing your crops.
Fertilizing
Close-up of a gardener's hand in a dark blue glove holding a handful of bright blue granular fertilizers over a black bucket full of fertilizers.
Start with organic-rich soil, so you rarely need fertilizer unless growth or nutrients appear to be lacking. If you give your plants plenty of organic material at the start of planting, they will rarely need extra fertilizer. However, if you’re concerned about the performance and nutrient content of your soil, you can amend it with an organic fertilizer high in phosphorus like this one. Add the plant food at the beginning of spring when your plants are dormant. You can also give your plants a light feeding a few weeks to a month before harvest. This is usually in June.
Maintenance
Train tayberries on trellises like other brambles; arbors and large supports work especially well. Tayberries are incredibly easy to maintain once you get them in the ground. Because of their growing habit, they respond well to growing on trellises. Large structures such as the Gracie Modern Arbor work great with these plants. Like many other species of brambles, you can remove old canes after they bear fruit. These canes will naturally die back. Use disinfected pruners or shears and cut the canes at their base. This will encourage new canes to form at the base of the plant.
Propagation
A gardener uses a pair of pruners to snip new green growth of a bramble vine. Propagate tayberries easily by suckers, tip layering, or root cuttings to grow more plants. Tayberries are easy to propagate by planting their suckers, taking root cuttings, or tip layering. Each method will yield new and productive plants.
Tip Layering
Roots growing from stems of Rubus shoot as a result of layering.
Tip layering works best when bending long canes into the soil and covering them for rooting. Tip layering is my favorite way to propagate tayberries. Simply wait until you have healthy young canes growing more than a few feet long. Carefully bend the tips of the canes to the soil and pile the soil on top of them. Wait a couple of weeks until the tips develop roots in their new location. Once the roots grow, carefully cut the tips from their parent plant. Give the new plants plenty of water to encourage new growth. You can also let your plants propagate by tip layering naturally. Simply avoid trellising the entire plant or a few sections of canes. Gravity will do its magic and bend the canes to the ground naturally.
Root Cuttings
Plant root cuttings in the spring using well-drained soil and move them later after they have established roots.Take root cuttings in the fall from healthy plants. Carefully dig around the root system and remove a healthy root that’s about the thickness of a pencil. Slice them into 6-inch lengths and store them away in coconut coir or peat moss. Keep the storage temperature at around 32°F (0°C) and keep the medium moist. In the early spring, plant the root cuttings in well-drained soil. You can start them in containers and transplant them later in the season.
Suckers
A gardener trimming a sucker to transplant into containers and propagate more tayberries.Dig and transplant suckers with water to help them quickly root in their new spot.Suckers are sections of new growth that appear at the base of the plant. They resemble tiny bramble plants that pop up sporadically in the spring. Propagate suckers by digging them up from the soil and transplanting them. Give them plenty of water and they’ll take root in their new location.
Harvesting and Storage
Tayberries fruit heavily mid-summer; harvest gently because ripe berries bruise or break easily when picked.Tayberries produce one large harvest in mid-summer, typically around July. They are very brittle, so use caution when picking them. If they’re not sliding off their stems effortlessly, they’re probably not ripe enough. After harvesting, carefully lay them on a pan or paper towel in the fridge. Enjoy them fresh or use them in jams, preserves, sauces, and pies, or even use them to make wine. Replace other brambles with your tayberries for recipes such as pies or crumbles. They make wonderful fruit marinades or ingredients in homemade ice cream.
Common Problems
Watch for pest and disease issues in poor conditions. Although these bramble hybrids are easy to maintain, you’ll want to watch for common problems such as pests and diseases. Below are a few common pests and diseases that can attack your plants if their growing conditions are less than ideal.