Raspberries and Blackberries
With a little bit of yearly care, raspberries and blackberries can stay productive for 25 years or longer. Bramble fruits such as raspberries and blackberries need regular pruning in order to be as productive as possible and also to make them self-supporting.
Commercial growers use trellises or other supports to control the canes, but for the homeowner this is not necessary if proper pruning is done at the right time. There are three different pruning schedules depending on the type of bramble fruit you are growing.
You'll need to know whether you are growing summer- bearing red raspberries, everbearing red or gold raspberries, or purple or black raspberries or hardy blackberries to determine which schedule you use. In some books and catalogs, the terms everbearing and fall-bearing are used interchangeably. In addition, everbearing raspberries like 'Heritage' can be pruned to produce two crops or just one larger fall crop. If you have brambles growing and you don't know what variety they are, you may have to play detective and watch them for a year or so to figure out if they summer- or everbearing.
Most brambles produce their fruit on two-year old canes called floricanes. The first year canes are called primocanes. On everbearing varieties, primocanes also produce fruit. After floricanes have fruited they die and the current year's primocanes continue to develop to produce next year's crop. Thinning the plants to just a few canes per square foot is necessary to keep up the size of the berries and to allow good air circulation that helps prevent disease. It also makes picking easier: you will be able to see and reach the fruit better. If you'd like, transplanting some of the shoots you thin out. Raspberries don't bear well if over fertilized, so give them a slow release organic fertilizer or light application of a balanced garden fertilizer such as 10-10-10 when growth begins in the spring. Mulch in the fall with leaves. They should only need water if the weather is drier than normal. If you follow these simple rules, you should be able to enjoy lots of lovely sun-ripened berries from your own berry patch. The only tools you will need are a pair of sharp bypass pruners and a pair of bramble-proof gloves. You may also want to wear long sleeves and long pants to protect yourself from thorns. Pruning brambles produces stocky, productive floricanes, limits the spread of the plants beyond their row and removes spent canes to control disease. When pruning to thin a patch so it will be more productive, remove the thinner canes and leave the stockier ones. Generally, stockier canes will be more productive than thinner canes. Brambles are susceptible to some disease problems that can be more problematic in patches that are not pruned regularly. Whenever brambles are pruned, the canes that have been cut out should be disposed of (not composted) since they can harbor diseases and insects. Brambles that are trellised have slightly different pruning requirements. For more details on pruning trellised brambles, or for details on pruning other types of small fruits, refer to the book Growing Fruit in the Upper Midwest by Don Gordon. Here is basic information on how to deal with pruning in the average homeowners patch.
Summer-bearing Red Raspberries
Red raspberry varieties such as Nordic and Latham bear their crop in early summer.
These raspberries are pruned twice a year, when dormant and after bearing. First pruning Dormant pruning can be done when the plants are dormant – from the time the leaves are gone in fall until growth starts in the spring, with a preference for spring. The largest canes will be the most productive so thin each plant to the best 4 to 6 canes. Head the remaining canes back to 4 1/2 to 5 feet. Keep the row to about 12 inches wide by removing any canes that grow beyond that space.
Second pruning In summer after the harvest, remove the canes that fruited (floricanes) and again remove any new canes sneaking out of the row. When removing floricanes, try to make the pruning cut as close to the ground as possible.
Everbearing Red and Gold Raspberries
These raspberries, particularly 'Heritage', can be managed to bear in both early summer and fall. Two crop method If you want your plants to bear twice, prune them the same as the summer bearing raspberries. Their primocanes will bear in the fall after the floricanes and again the following year. The early crop is small so some gardeners prefer the one-step pruning that eliminates that crop, but produces a heavier fall crop
. One crop method Cut or mow all the canes to the ground when the plants are dormant. That can be anytime from late fall until growth starts in the spring. The crop will be somewhat earlier than if the plants had already fruited once. After mowing the canes, rake up and dispose of the debris.
Black and Purple Raspberries and Hardy Blackberries
These varieties have a different growth habit than the red raspberries. They don't sucker and they fruit on lateral branches that grow from their canes. This makes it necessary to prune them three times a year to get the most out of them and to keep them upright without support.
First Pruning When the plants are dormant, the lateral branches are cut back to promote larger fruit. Prune the laterals of black raspberries to eight buds, the purple a few more and hardy blackberries to about 18 inches.
Second Pruning This step is called "tipping" because you are removing 2 to 3 inches of the tips from the primocanes. This is done when the plants reach a particular size and is best not left longer because the side growth must be stimulated at the right time. Tip black raspberry canes when they are about 2 feet high, purple raspberries at 2.5 feet and blackberries at 3 feet. All the canes don't reach tipping height at the same time, so go over the patch several times during the summer to catch the stragglers.
Third Pruning As the plants finish fruiting, remove the spent canes and thin the plants to the best (biggest) 5 new canes. Since these plants don't sucker, there won't be as many growing outside the row.
Recommended Products
Quality Bramble Plants from Bachman's
Bypass Hand Pruners
Long-Handled Bypass Pruners
Gardening Gloves and Tools
Packaged Soils and Soil Amendments
Book: Growing Fruit in the Upper Midwest by Don Gordon
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