NEIGHBORHOOD GARDEN FOR MAY 21, 2016

NEIGHBORHOOD GARDEN FOR MAY 21, 2016

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GROWING RASPBERRIES PART #1

BY GEORGE EDGAR

My first contact with growing Raspberries was in my mother’s garden. I helped her prune them, pick them, and of course eat them. She had both black summer Raspberries and red “Heritage” everbearing Raspberries. When I had room, I transplanted some Red Raspberry canes to my garden, and put them along the back fence. A few years later I transplanted some black Raspberry canes to the west end of the back fence.

Later we planted some white pines just south of the back fence. In a few years the trees began to shade the Raspberries so I made a raised bed 25 feet long, and 3 feet wide, and moved the Red Raspberries again. They have done very well in that north-south row as Raspberries need full sun.

GROWING EVERBEARING RASPBERRIES:

1. Plant new canes or transplant canes 2 feet to 3 feet apart in a bed that drains very well. Prepare planting bed by adding lots of compost, or “Humus and Manure”, or composted manure. Raspberries require full sun and a North-South row works best.

2. At the time of planting or in early spring on an established bed, fertilize with a slow release 10-10-10 fertilizer.

3. Everbearing Raspberries can be called “the lazy persons” Raspberry. If so desired, just prune them all the way to the ground in the fall after a couple of hard freezes or in the early spring. This will provide a large fall crop of berries in the fall. Do not put any diseased canes in your compost pile.

4. If you want both a spring harvest and a fall harvest, leave the old canes until spring. In late February or early March remove the top few inches where the fruit was last fall. After the spring harvest, remove the old brown canes all the way to the ground. Leave the new green canes, which come up from the roots, for the fall harvest.

5. Remember that everbearing Raspberry canes live only two years so must be pruned at least once a year in order to get a good harvest.

6. Water on a regular basis as Raspberries need lots of water but do not over water so roots rot.

7. Enjoy large red or yellow berries. The spring harvest begins in mid-June. The fall harvest begins in late August to early September, and continues until frost. The bed in my yard is a raised bed, 25 foot long and 3 feet wide. A few years ago, during peak fall harvest, I picked 10 small green baskets per week for three weeks.

8. I have never had to put on a fungicide or an insecticide. One year I did use Insecticidal soap for white flies. Be extremely careful if you use an insecticide so you don’t kill the pollinators, or you will not have any fruit. Insecticidal soap works fine.

9. Everbearing Raspberry plants sucker so if you want a new bed, or to expand an existing bed, you can dig the new suckers in the spring just after they come up and move them to a new location. Take as much of the root system as possible.

For more information about Raspberries contact your local county extension office.