Tayberries

The Tayberry is a delicious  hybrid cross between the loganberry and a black raspberry or a blackberry with a raspberry.   The bush, which is similar to a raspberry produces large, very sweet, aromatic and perfumed fruit. These fruits can be up to 5cm (2″) long.

The delicious fruits are best picked when they have changed from pink/red to a fully ripened deep purple.  Either eat as a dessert with a dollop of cream or simply guzzle straight from the bush. 

Tayberries are straightforward to grow being extremely hardy because of their parentage and establish quickly. We grow ours against a fence and a wall with as much sunlight as possible.

Soil: prepare soil for planting bushes which have been well manured and composted. This is ideally conducted in autumn to allow the soil to settle and for the easy removal of perennial weeds. Before planting, give the ground a dressing of blood and bone meal. Tayberries grow in all types of soil provided there is good drainage and the position is only partially shaded. Full Sun is ideal.

Support the stems on a framework of wires stretched between sturdy, well-placed 1.8m (6′) posts, or fixed and trained against a wall or trellis (similar to blackberries). Water well for the first year and avoid any drying out until the bushes are fully established. Train the stems onto their supports as they grow. Newly planted bushes can be cut back to 25cm from the soil to promote new, vigorous growth.

Cover the plants with netting to protect the crop from birds as tayberry fruits begin to develop.  In autumn, prune the canes which have fruited over summer to ground level. Canes which have not fruited should be ‘tied in’ to their supports. In spring, while the ground is moist, apply a mulch of garden compost or manure to the base of the canes to improve and maintain moisture retention throughout the summer.

Cropping, Flowering & Fruiting Times

Estimated time to cropping once planted: 16-20 months.
Estimated time to best yields: 28-32 months.

Flowering period: late May to July  (once established)

Fruiting period: July to early September. These fruits will provide for over 15 years or more.

 

Up to 200cm (78.7in)

Up to 250cm (98.4in)

Varieties: Buckingham – one of the greats and available from notable suppliers like Thompson & Morgan.

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