Topic: Planting raspberry canes-a dilemma!

[George the Pigman]

I have just bought some summer and autumn bare rooted raspberry canes in two pots. Of course they are not literally bare rooted as they consist of several canes tied together in lots of compost in the pots.
I have raised beds on my plot but also an open fruit area at the back with two apple trees, blackcurrant and blackberry bushes and some wayward raspberry canes that keep coming up near the shed after my last carefully planted ones eventually died a few years ago. All are surrounded by generous quantities of couch grass.
I want to replace these wayward raspberries with the new canes but realise that practically we wont be able to get this done until the autumn as we need to dig and prepare the ground properly. My dilemma is what to do about the canes I have in pots.
I could give up the idea of putting them in the open fruit patch and put them in a raised bed now but then how do you support them?
Alternatively I could separate the canes and put them individually into pots of compost and keep them  then put them into the open fruit area in the autumn.
Any advice and suggestions would be welcomed.

[Paulh]

They'll be fine potted up individually or a couple to a large pot, obviously keep them well watered.

Or you could plant them temporarily at a closer spacing in that fabled spare corner where we are told to heel in flowered daffodils, lifted leeks and so on! Lift and replant when your bed is ready. Don't worry too much about keeping the whole root system. it always seems to be a fairly scrappy affair and they grow away fine in the spring.

[Tulipa]

I grow Joan J autumn fruiting and they have never needed supporting in the same way the summer fruiting do if that helps?

[Obelixx]

Despite being given a good seeing to last summer after fruiting, our raspberry patch is growing so prolifically that it is self supporting.   We need to go in and thin it out again.   We also need to keep pulling out shoots in the paths surrounding their bed and also my polytunnel.

Not shy, raspberries!   

I'd just pot yours up into a bigger pot or else plant them in a raised bed and let them get on with it till you have their new bed ready.  You can always add a few corner stakes and some wire if needed.

[saddad]

I have cleared (hopefully) a raspberry bed and have the canes in "troughs" like large window baskets... while we find them a home.