Blackberry 'Lawtonberry'

Gorgeous, plum coloured berries with a sweet flavour. Heavy cropping and delicious right from the plant, or in jams (especially jams) and deserts.

Lawtonberry has been grown commercially in the USA almost 200 years. Best left to ripen on the cane for flavour. Slightly smaller fruit than blackberries.

On established canes, you can pick your fruit regularly December to February (in the Dandenongs). You can eat the berries straight from the bush or cook them into jams, pies, sauces etc.

The canes are semi erect and should be supported on a trellis for best results. Train them up and down the trellis like an ABC logo, plaiting them through the wires. The stems have thorns.

Top prune in summer to encourage branching, and remove the old canes in winter – they fruit on last year’s stems (one year wood). The plants are self-fertile, so you only need to start with one, though come harvest time you may wish you had planted more!

Plant Lawntonberries in full sun, into humus rich, well drained soil. Space 150-180cm apart. Plant the cane quite shallow, around 10cm deep. Water in and keep moist when in flower and fruit. Add some mulch to help with water retention and weed reduction. Protect from hot afternoon sun.