Seasonal dishes and cakes made with ingredients from our own garden are an enrichment for the palate and soul. Blackberries are suitable for a variety of uses in juices, cakes and sauces, although the exact harvest time can vary depending on the variety and location.
When is the harvest time for blackberries?
The harvest time for blackberries is between July and October, depending on the variety and location. To harvest ripe fruits, they should be easy to remove with gentle pressure, as blackberries do not ripen after picking.
Wild blackberries and cultivated varieties
Basically, when it comes to blackberries, a distinction is made between the cultivated varieties and the wild types of blackberries, which grow on embankments, roadsides and on industrial dumps without human intervention. Overall, the blackberry varieties native to this country hardly differ in their respective ripening times. Depending on the spring weather, this usually begins in July and often extends into October. However, longer periods of wet weather can suddenly interrupt the harvest pleasure in some years, as they promote mold formation on the fruit directly on the bush.
Harvest blackberries continuously from the bush
Blackberries are a special garden fruit because they can be harvested continuously over a relatively long period of time. This is because the fruits are not all formed at the same time after flowering, but rather ripen in the respective groups on the tendrils a few days apart. This outweighs the fact that blackberries only have a very short shelf life after harvest, even in the refrigerator. Since blackberries do not ripen after picking, you should only pick them when they are already peeling off with gentle pressure. If this is not the case, it is probably still a very sour specimen.
Approaching the harvest correctly
While cultivars and cultivars without thorns are often planted in the garden, wild blackberries in nature should not be underestimated in terms of their defensive ability. That's why older clothing with longer trouser legs and sleeves is mandatory for the harvest. You should also take the following things with you:
- Gloves for opening the blackberry thicket
- small and large bowls for collecting the fruits without crushing
- Sturdy footwear for stability on slopes
Tips & Tricks
The harvest time for blackberries can be brought forward slightly depending on the climatic conditions. If you want to harvest blackberries earlier in the summer, you can plant the blackberry plants on sunny walls and slopes.
