Karaka Black Blackberry Plants

Karaka Black Blackberry Bushes

Karaka Black has only been available in the UK for a few years and it's already very popular indeed. The fruit size is massive, with shiny skin and a refreshing, mildly acidic flavour that cooks well.
It's really outstanding feature is its long season - the first fruit are ripe in mid-July, then it keeps right on cropping into September!
Because it spends its energy on making big fruit over a long period, Karaka Black is less vigorous than most blackberries, so it's great for small spaces or big pots. Not thornless, but less vicious than most other varieties.

Browse our variety of blackberry plants or see our full range of soft fruit bushes for sale.

Features

• Self-fertile.
• Only mildy thorny.
• Fruit weight can be up to 11g.
• Cooks well.
• Crops continuously for up to 8 weeks, from mid-July through to September.
• Resistant to grey mould (Botrytis) - this also means that it stores well in the fridge.

Growing Karaka Black Blackberry Plants:

Because this plant works so hard to make its monster sized fruit, you will get the best from it by planting in a really sunny spot.
Spacing: These aren't very vigorous plants, so you can get away with planting them only 3'6" / 1 metre apart.

Read our detailed information on how to grow blackberries here.

History & Trivia

Karaka Black is really a hybrid berry. The parents, Aurora (which is a Rubus ursinus variety, the Pacific blackberry/dewberry) and Comanche, were bred in Oregon and Arkansas respectively, and they were crossed in New Zealand by Harvey Hall at the New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research.
They were released in the UK in 2003 and have performed well in tests.