Autum Raspberries should they be thinned out

[Digeroo]

I have JoanJ which seem to be rampant even in my limey soil.

There is a little forect of new shoots coming up from the ground.
I am concerned that there are just too many.

[Digeroo]

[saddad]

I tend to dig them up and split them periodically... but cutting out some stems could help preserve the fruit size...  :-\

[grannyjanny]

Sorry to hijack your thread Digeroo ;D.Is it to late to do it for this year?

[Digeroo]

I have just moved some which have sprung up too far from the main batch.   They are still looking happy. 

I am just worried with so many new sprouts that they will not get to their full height.   Last year was their second year and their first fruiting year and I had about four shoots per plant and they cropped fantastically.  This year there are about 20.  I am worried there will not be enough moisture/nutrients in the soil to sustain so many.

I have very alkaline soil so having loads of new growth on raspberries is something new to me.  I think I might dig up an spilt some each year so I maintain a good crop of them.  I bought some more so in a couple of years I will be inundated with them.
Yum yum

[green lily]

If the shoots look healthy I'd leave them. Some grass mowings or compost around them will help feed the plants. I'm inclined to use bagged farmhouse manure in the winter and woodash in the spring. However after 6-7 years my raspberries are out to take over the world so this winter i dug them all up and put back the youngest +healthiest roots I could find. Mine are Autumn Bliss so they've plenty of time to make new growth. I would have thought splitting after 2 years would be rather tough on the plants. I'd cut out the weaker stems and leave them for another year or 2 when they should be good and sturdy.

[artichoke]

I don't know if this helps at all, or if others agree with it:

I have noticed over the years that my Autumn Bliss have a first flush of flowers and fruit on the tallest, thickest canes, then a second growth comes up to extend the season, and sometimes I then remove the older canes to give the newer ones more space. My rows are 8 - 10 years old. And yes, I do remove the strays that wander into other beds. I have never thought of digging up the whole clump and splitting it - sounds like hard work.......

[chriscross1966]

Digging them out is moderately hard work but if you've got a variety you like then it's basically own-produced bare-root plants with a very short "out-of-ground" period... so should be more successful than bought id if you have to...n plants assuming you have a healthy stock.... I'd train in as many as I could, cut out the rest and if they're sprouting away from where you want try digging it up and potting it for a year, potgrown plants make it easier to establish a new be, though of course do need more watering...

[gwynleg]

I've had to thin mine out as they had become a forest (there may have been an enchanted kingdom in there) and were taking over other beds on both my lottie and my neighbours! I have been able to give away lots of the plants to new people who are all very pleased.