Amateur Gardening – 10 August 2019

Raspberriesareextremely

versatileplantsandcangrowin most

situations,thoughtheyprefera

sunnysightwithfree-draining,

slightlyacidicsoil.

Theyalsogrowwellin large

containers,makingthemideal for

gardenerswithsmallplots.

Youcanbuycontainer-grown

plantsallyearround,thoughsummer

isn’tthebesttimetogetthemin the

groundasthesoilwillbedryand

they’llneeda lotof watering.

Thebesttimetoplantis winter,

whenyoucanbuybare-root

canescheaply.

Thesearesmallerthanpot-grown

plants,butoncein thegroundthey

willgrowrapidlyaslongasthey are

kept well watered and fed.

Removefruitedcanestomakeroomfornew,saysRuth

I

Thasbeenanexcellentyearfor

raspberries,andgoingoutinto

thegardenfirstthingtoharvest

berriesfortheday’sbreakfasts,

ortofreezeforwintercrumbles, has

becomea morningtradition.

Nowthesummercanesarealmostall

spentandarelookingtiredandragged,

thoughtheautumn-fruitingvarietieslook

promisingfora fewweeks’time.

Thefruitedstemsneedtobecutback

rightdowntothegroundtomakeroom

fornewgrowth,andalsoforthisyear’s

juvenilecanesthat will mature and fruit

next summer.

Simplyworkyourwayalongthe

row,cuttingbackoldstemswithsharp

secateurs,takingcarethatyoudon’tnick

anyhealthynewgrowth.Rememberto

wearglovestoavoidinjuryfromthorns.

Oncetheoldcaneshavegone,work

yourwaybackandcutoutanyof the

freshgreengrowththatlooksweak,

spindlyorovercrowded.Thentiein the

remainingcanestohorizontal wires – it

reallyis thateasy!

Below,I alsoshowyouhowtotake

a brokenpieceof plant– in thiscase,

frommybargainsalvia– anduse it as

a cutting to grow a new one!

Curbackthisyear’sfruitedcanes

on summer-fruiting raspberries

Taking a cutting using a broken stem

2

Takingthetop4in(10cm)ofstem,

removethelargeleavesandanythat

are wilted, leaving smaller, healthy ones.

3

Dipthebottomendofthe

cuttingin hormonerooting

powderorgeltoboostroot

development and tap off the excess.

4

Insertthecuttingintoa smallpot

containinga dampenedmixof

seedandcuttingscompost and

perlite or vermiculite.

1

Checkthatthestemis worthusing

(discardif brownandcompletely

wilted) and cut off the flower head.

5

Sealthepotin a clearplastic

bagandplaceit somewhere

warmandlight,but away from

direct sunlight.

Step

by step

When to plant

Raspberriesarehappy in

pots and borders

Whenthecuttingstartstogrow,

moveit toa largerpotwhenitsroots

areshowingatthebottom of its

current container

Cutbackright

at the base

6 AMATEUR GARDENING10 AUGUST 2019

Canessoonstart

to look tatty

Whenharvesting
raspberries,weleavethe
lower-growingfruitwhere
theyareastheymayhave
beennibbledbymiceor
pecked by birds.

Bare-root in winter is best option