First raspberries today...

[OllieC]

First Raspberry harvest of the year - Joan J, left for an early crop... Daughter Annabelle chomped her way through the first half pound or so of them today. Annoyingly, the camera was at home...

[OllieC]

[Suzanne]

Dead envious  :)

[ceres]

I was just leaving my plot tonight after picking a couple of pounds of strawbs when I spotted a lovely ripe rasp.  It isn't there now!  Will have to have a root around tomorrow and see what I can find. 

[Chris Graham]

I'm looking forward to them this year, as we planted new canes last year and still got loads.  This year we should get even more!

[davholla]

First Raspberry harvest of the year - Joan J, left for an early crop... Daughter Annabelle chomped her way through the first half pound or so of them today. Annoyingly, the camera was at home...

I thought Joan J was autumn raspberries ?

[OllieC]

First Raspberry harvest of the year - Joan J, left for an early crop... Daughter Annabelle chomped her way through the first half pound or so of them today. Annoyingly, the camera was at home...

I thought Joan J was autumn raspberries ?

Shhhh, don't tell them, they might stop!
A lot of people don't know this, but if you just cut them back to half their height at the end of the year, you get raspberries now in the following year. The new wood is still growing for Autumn. Pruning is a bit fiddly, but worth the effort IMHO. Same for all the primocanes, as far as I know.

[adeymoo]

oooh I love raspberries. My summer raspberries were planted in the winter so I am not expecting much this year but I have a query. My original canes have become bushy with only minimal appearance of new canes through the ground. I read that once new canes appear the original cane should be cut down but how do you know which original cane the new cane has come from. Also does a new branch off the bottom of the original cane at soil level count as a new cane.

[davholla]

I think summer raspberries should only be pruned after they get fruit.

[Old bird]

You lucky so and so!!  Mine are only green at the moment - not even a hint of a blush!

adeymoo

You should get a few this year.  The way to tell which you should cut down is fairly simple when you get there!  You follow the cane up to the top and you see whether there are any fruit stalks left on them and cut those ones down to the ground.  They generally also are brown whereas the new stems are generally green or certainly not as brown as the older ones.

I cut them down when the last fruit has been eaten so the difference is also a bit more obvious.

Old Bird
;D

[valmarg]

We've got JoanJ, and it is a wonderful variety.

Unfortunately, the plants I bought a couple of years ago, we decided to plant at the side of the greenhouse.  Due to suckering, we now have indoor and outdoor raspberries.

The problem is that they are taking over the tomato space.

I just wish I could cut plants out and throw away, ie be ruthless, but I can't. :( :( :(

valmarg