Keeping bare root soft fruit

 I've been thinking of ordering some soft fruit plants from J
Parkers: http://www.jparkers.co.uk/
All their stock is sent bare root.  I know it's very late in the year to do
this, but they say they'll ship until end of April.

However, their delivery times are fairly lax ('28 days').  Since I can't
know when they'll arrive, I can't guarantee to have time to plant them
straightaway (even in pots).  Given that the weather is warming up, is there
some way I can keep them (for a week or a fortnight, perhaps) without them
suffering?

For example, I know they're activated by soaking them in a bucket of water.
Could I leave them in that bucket for an extended period?  Or I have a
spare (working) fridge: if they were put in the fridge would they go dormant
for the period (as if there's been a cold snap) or would that be too much of
a shock?  Would the humidity in the fridge cause issues for mould?

Any other suggestions (other than 'buy from someone else')?

Thanks
Theo

 On 25 Mar 2011 14:36:43 +0000 (GMT), Theo Markettos


Just hack a hole in a convenient spot, and temporarily plant them all
in it, covering gently but firmly. See "heeling in" at, e.g.:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2272122_heel-bareroot-plants.html
Getting very late, though. They shouldn't really have started into
growth when you plant them finally, and two apple trees I had from
Parker's during the winter are now bursting their buds.

The bucket is an absolute "no": an hour in water would be about the
safe maximum. I think you're right to be worried about the conditions
in a domestic fridge: no air circulation, and that's something plants
can't stand.

Pity about that. I'd have suggested going to a nursery, or maybe a
garden centre, as soon as you have a day free: that way, you could
plant them as soon as you got home.

 
Thanks.  In the end I had a look around and found what I wanted wasn't
vastly more expensive at Blackmoor (being a place I've visited and trust).
When I went to checkout it said delivery was a tenner, but I went back a
screen to check something then went forward again and a 'free delivery'
option appeared.  Also using the discount code 'facebook' got another 10%
off.  Which reduced the price to about the same as Parker's for a few fewer
plants.

Ordered on Sunday, dispatched on Tuesday (last day this year for bare root),
received this morning, now in the ground.  Which is a good thing, because
the blackcurrants were already sprouting.

Should I be doing winter pruning on newly-planted fruit bushes, or is it too
late when they're sprouting?


I had a look at our local (within walking distance), but it's something of a
'leisure destination' place - all patio furniture and coffee shop.  The
selection of fruit wasn't too bad (almost no raspberries left though), but
prices were about 3x Parker's.

Theo

 On 31 Mar 2011 20:24:45 +0100 (BST), Theo Markettos


Oh, gosh! I'm scared to take responsibility for this decision, so
don't blame me... I don't really know, but intuition tells me to prune
red and white currants and gooseberries lightly right away, but to
leave black currants alone till next winter. As long as your new
plants are allowed to produce a good root system in their first years,
it probably doesn't matter *too* much.
[...]

--
Mike.

 On Fri, 01 Apr 2011 16:00:48 +0100, Mike Lyle



 Blackcurrant should be hard pruned, so that the framework builds up
this year, fruit next year.