How to Grow Raspberries
Select an everbearing variety, practice a few trellising and pruning tricks, and pick berries from July through fall
by Darlene White
You have to pick often to keep up with everbearing raspberries, though it's a welcome task. The author's canes grow to more than 7 feet tall every year.
You may think the sheer gustatory pleasure of wolfing down ripe, juicy raspberries, whose flavor explodes in your mouth, is reason enough to grow them. Well, think again. Raspberries are not just another tasty berry; they are loaded with healthful attributes. They're high in fiber and contain vitamin A, folate, antioxidants, and numerous minerals; the juice contains vitamin C; and those sometimes-annoying little seeds contain vitamin E. And, of course, if you have a raspberry patch, you have endless dessert possibilities.
The key elements to raspberry success are careful selection of plant type, a good solid trellising system, and husbandry techniques that match the needs of the plant. Once everything is in place, your raspberry patch will provide you with many years of satisfaction.
Why choose an everbearing variety?
We chose a classically red, everbearing variety called 'Summit', after asking our local agriculture office which raspberries are recommended for our area. We also taste-tested berries from local berry farms (an important step) to determine our favorite. We then shopped around for rooted canes that were certified disease-free.
Various raspberry cultivars will flourish from Zones 3 to 10. A little homework will get you, too, the right raspberries for your location. Take your time in selection, because raspberries come in varying shapes, sizes, and colors—red, purple, golden, white.
So why did we choose an everbearing variety? We love raspberries. We're willing to pick fruit every day until frost so we can eat our fill, give some to the neighbors, freeze some for winter, and leave the rest to the birds. Summer-bearing raspberries fruit for about a month, then it's all over (the fruit and the work) until next year. Everbearing raspberries, treated well, are just that—ever bearing. One mild winter we found a few ripe berries still hanging on in December. Once established, everbearing raspberries -- called fall bearing by some—begin production in our area in July. The canes are usually so loaded down, they bend far over their support wires. Summer-bearing varieties generally fruit earlier, usually by a few weeks, so we also planted a few bushes of wine-red 'Brandywine' to enjoy while we wait for the heavier-producing main crop. For variety, we added the yellow-tinged 'Golden', which is everbearing. Other similar varieties are 'Fall Gold', 'Golden Summit', and 'Golden Harvest'.
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