Topic: Planting summer and autumn fruiting raspberry canes in the same bed...bad idea?

[newspud9]

I decided that the 6'x6' bed was too small for new raspberry canes and better used for next season's sweetcorn. I'm now going to plant the canes in a bed which is 6'x12'.  That will give me room for 2 rows but can I use one for autumn and the other for summer fruiting varieties.  I've read that you shouldn't grow these in the same bed, but if each is in a single row then I can't see the issue. Grateful for some advice here.

[Tee Gee]

I've read that you shouldn't grow these in the same bed, but if each is in a single row then I can't see the issue.

To a degree I agree with you but one issue I can see is;

Raspberry plants send out root runners and these  can become entwined with each other meaning you could have pruning problems i.e. knowing which cane is an early or late variety!

You might be better planting 2 x 2 six foot rows as clumps rather than on two long rows as you are suggesting!

[pumkinlover]

I have planted two rows adjacent but with a gap in between of about 2.5 foot.
By keeping the  area  between clear of shoots and pruning correctly they have stayed apart.
But it does mean extra vigilence.

[newspud9]

Helpful comments, thank you. I’m going to go with Tee Gee’s clump suggestion.

[Beersmith]

I have both summer and autumn fruiting varieties in my fruit cage and have never had the slightest problem. Half a row is summer and half autumn.

TeeGee does make a valid point though.  They are pruned differently, so you must not get them mixed up, and you will need to prevent runners spreading between the two.  But these are fairly trivial matters. I cannot think of any other reason not to grow both. 

[Tulipa]

Hi Newspud,

To add to the suggestions I have grown Joan J only for the last 12 years. sometimes I leave some of them unpruned for an earlier crop, but don't be too mislead by the word autumn, the fruit on Joan J are always ready to start picking at the beginning of July and it has hardly been worth having the earlier crop.  The autumn fruiting cultivars just go on producing for longer than the summer ones.

[newspud9]

Hi Tulipa..thank you, that’s interesting info about availability of the fruit (I didn’t realise it was that early).

[Paulh]

Last winter I didn't get around to cutting back the canes and when I eventually cleared the old dead canes out of the bed, there were also some of last year's ones that were growing away. I didn't have the heart to cut them off. So I had a first crop from June to mid-July of smaller but still tasty berries and now the crop off this year's canes from early August which are the usual large berries. There are fewer canes but still plenty of fruit for us.