Nova Raspberry vs Chester Thornless Blackberry - TreeTime.ca

Nova Raspberry vs Chester Thornless Blackberry

Rubus x Nova

Rubus fruticosa Chester (Thornless)

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Nova Raspberry
Chester Thornless Blackberry

Taste is the reason people buy the Nova Raspberry.

Nova canes have very few spines. As it has a firmer berry, it is commonly planted for commercial plantings where a harvester is used.

The Nova Raspberry gets its name from where it was bred, in Nova Scotia. It was created to survive and thrive in the varying climates of Canada.

The Nova Raspberry is a fast-growing floricane. This means that raspberries will not grow on canes the year they first grow. The mature canes they do grow on, however, produce more berries than primocane varieties.

Chester Thornless Blackberry is a self-pollinating fruit-bearing shrub. In mid-summer, the Chester Thornless Blackberry produces large, sweet-tasting, heart-shaped blackberries that are perfect for fresh eating. It is a semi-erect blackberry plant that requires little support from a trellis to keep its fruit off the ground. Don't forget to protect your berries. The birds love this shrub almost as much as you will.

Chester Thornless Blackberries are floricanes, primarily fruiting on second year canes. Each spring cut back all two-year old canes, leaving only the last year’s growth.

Nova Raspberry Quick Facts

Chester Thornless Blackberry Quick Facts

Zone: 2a
Zone: 3b
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Height: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 3 m (10 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: dry, normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: fast
Life span: short
Life span: short
Suckering: high
Suckering: high


Flowers: pink
Berries: red, slightly acidic
Berries: heart shaped black
Firmness: firm
Firmness: firm
Harvest: mid summer
Harvest: July
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Other Names: chester blackberry, hardy blackberry