I forgot my original post that got erased, was about spacing FERTALIZER, but some people plant Them closer together. (3 1/2 FEET)
AAA Organic Homesteading & Gardening
QUOTED FROM Tenzicut Early spring, before the plants leaf out, is generally the best time
to plant or transplant raspberries, though you can do it in the fall
too, just after the leaves drop, as long as your winters are fairly
mild. Since the berries will remain in that bed for many years, make
sure you prepare the soil especially well before you plant,
cultivating deeply and adding a good amount of organic material. I just take the shoots that are coming up out of row and use a
shovel to dig them up and put them in a new row. I dont make too
much of a fuss over them, just dig a hole and toss them in. I had the use of a wire feed welder and LOTS of pipe, so I made my
rows with a 4" pipe that was about 4 feet above ground and 2 below
(fence post pounder got them in) and then I had two 1/2 inch pipe(?)
welded on sideways about 12-18 inches apart which I then ran wire
through on both sides and pulled tight for the raspberries to go up
through to keep my row in order as when I moved to that property,
the raspberries were a MESS and about 15 years worth of growing like
mad. To get the most out of your raspberry planting, you must choose your
planting site carefully. Raspberries prefer full sunlight and grow
best in well-drained, sandy loam soils rich in organic matter. Avoid
low areas that remain wet late into the spring, but select a site
with access to a water supply. Irrigation is important for good
plant growth during dry periods and can improve fruit size and yield. Do not plant raspberries where tomatoes, potatoes, peppers or
eggplant have been grown within the past four years, because these
crops carry a root rot, called Verticillium, which can also attack
raspberries. Destroy all wild raspberry and blackberry plants within
a distance of 600 feet of the site if possible, to reduce the
possibility that virus diseases might spread to your planting. Preparing the Soil
Getting the soil ready for raspberries may take up to two years,
depending on its condition. Test the soil to determine it pH and
fertility levels. Raspberries prefer a soil pH of 5.6 to 6.2; this
may require applications of ground limestone to increase the pH of
more acid soils. Soil testing information is available from your
county Cooperative Extension office. The level of organic matter in the soil can be improved and
perennial weeds discouraged by sowing a cover crop, such as
buckwheat, rye, millet or oats, and plowing it into the soil before
it goes to seed. There should be time enough for two sowings in a
single season. Applications of barnyard manure or compost and
repeated tilling for a full season can be substituted for cover
cropping. However, be aware that animal manures may contain weed
seeds that can become a problem in your planting later. In the spring of the planting year, spread 25 pounds of 10-10-10
garden fertilizer per 1,000 square feet of the planting site.
Organic fertilizer sources, such as compost, manures, sul-po-mag and
rock phosphate, may be used in place of synthetic fertilizers. Apply
enough of these materials to deliver two pounds each of nitrogen,
phosphorus (P2O5) and potassium (K2) per 1,000 square feet.
Cultivate the soil several days before planting to incorporate the
fertilizer and break up any clumps or clods. The Raspberry Plant
The crowns and roots of raspberry plants are perennial, but
individual canes live two years. Each spring, the plants produce
canes from buds on the crown and underground lateral stems. These
canes grow vegetatively during the first season, overwinter, and
produce fruit during the summer of the second year, while new canes
emerge to provide a crop for the following year. Second-year canes
die shortly after fruiting. Everbearing raspberries bear a crop on
the tips of first-year canes in the fall, followed by a typical
summer crop on the lower portion of the canes the second year. It's easy to tell first-year canes from second-year canes. First-
year canes have green stems, while second-year canes have a thin,
brown bark covering them. Although a wide selection of raspberry varieties is available, only
a few will do well under the short growing seasons and severe
winters of northern New England. Select only those that are rated
very hardy and early or mid-season ripening. In general, red raspberries are the hardiest type, followed by
purple raspberries, black raspberries and blackberries. Temperatures
below 5 degrees F will injure or kill blackberry and most purple and
black raspberry canes, so these should only be planted in southern
parts of Maine and New Hampshire, on protected sites. Order your plants from a reputable nursery or garden dealer. Specify
disease-free, virus-indexed stock. Most raspberries are sold as
dormant, one-year-old canes, but some nurseries offer plants
generated by tissue culture, or micropropagation. Tissue-cultured
plants may be more expensive, but they are less likely to have
disease problems. Suggested Varieties Red Raspberries Boyne: Early ripening. Large crops of medium-sized, dark red berries
with good flavor. Short, spiny canes. Very hardy. Killarney: Ripens mid-season. Medium-sized, bright red fruit with
good flavor. Short, spiny canes with many fine thorns. Very hardy. Newburgh: Ripens mid-season. Large, round, bright red fruit with
fair flavor. Good for freezing. Vigorous plants with very few
thorns. Hardy. Nova: Ripens mid-season. Medium-sized fruit, bright red, firm.
Resistant to most cane diseases. Latham: Mid-to-late ripening. Medium-large fruit, prone to
crumbling, with fair flavor. Plants are vigorous with few thorns.
Very hardy. Black Raspberries Jewel: Mid-season ripening. Firm, glossy fruit with good flavor.
Vigorous, erect plants. Blackberries Darrow: Large, glossy fruit with good flavor. Vigorous, erect plants
with large thorns, but susceptible to virus. Illini: Large fruit, vigorous plants with large thorns. Everbearing Raspberries August Red: Earliest ripening everbearing type. Soft, medium-sized
fruit with fair flavor. Short, spiny canes. Autumn Bliss: Early ripening fall crop with large flavorful fruit.
Canes are moderately vigorous with few thorns. Fall Red: Early ripening fall crop, but many be too late for all but
extreme southern Maine and New Hampshire. Medium-small fruit, soft
with good flavor. Vigorous, short spiny canes. Purple Raspberries Royalty: Late ripening. High yielding, large, round reddish purple
fruit that are soft, with good flavor. Large vigorous canes with
thorns. Susceptible to root rot. Success: Mid-to-late ripening. Small, dark purple fruit with good
flavor. High yielding. Slow spreading plants, with thorns. Planting and Management Systems
Raspberries should be planted early in the spring after the danger
of severe frost is past (in late April to early May). Do not allow
plant roots to dry out prior to or during planting. Plants should be
set at the same depth or slightly deeper that they were in the
nursery. Firm the soil around the roots and water the plants. If one-
year-old canes are used, cut them back to a height of four to six
inches about the ground. Red raspberry plants are typically grown in a hedge row. Crowns
should be planted about two feet apart in rows that are eight to 12
feet apart. Choose the wider spacing if you'll be using large
equipment, such as tractors, in the planting. The plants will soon
send up suckers from the roots and crowns to form a hedge, which
should be maintained at 12 to 18 inches wide. Purple and black raspberries and blackberries only produce suckers
from the base of the crown and will not fill out a hedgerow as red
raspberries do. For this reason, they are frequently grown in the
hill system to get the most production out of individual plants. For
this system, plants should be set four feet apart in rows eight to
12 feet apart. All raspberries should be grown with some sort of a trellis. This
will improve fruit quality, make harvesting easier and reduce
disease problems. Trellises also make pruning simpler by encouraging
new cane growth to occur in the middle of the row, rather than the
outside edges. For plants grown in a hedgerow, the "T" or "V"
trellis systems are recommended. Keep the planting completely free from weeds with shallow
cultivation and hand pulling as necessary. Make sure the plants
receive one to two inches of water a week for best growth. Mulch can
be used to reduce weed problems within the plant rows and will also
help retain soil moisture and add valuable organic matter. Spread
sawdust, bark, pine needles or rotted leaf mulch over the plant
rows, and maintain it at a depth of three to four inches. Starting the second year of the planting, a cover crop may be
planted between the rows. An annual cover crop may be planted
between the rows. An annual cover crop, such as spring oats, can be
sown just after harvest. The oats will aid in hardening off the
raspberry plants for winter by using up excess water and nutrients
in the soil and will also reduce weed growth. Oats will be killed by
low winter temperatures, and the dead sod cover will reduce soil
erosion in the spring. A permanent cover crop may also be sown following harvest the second
year. A non-competitive grass cover, such as a bluegrass-fescue mix,
can be sown between the plant rows. Take care to prevent grass from
spreading within a foot of the raspberry plants, or it will compete
with the raspberries for water and nutrients. Permanent sod covers
allow easy access in the raspberry planting, prevent soil erosion
and weed growth and can be easily maintained by regular mowing. Raspberries should be fertilized each year in the early spring (mid-
April). Apply 20 pounds of 10-10-10 (or organic equivalents) per
1,000 square feet of the planting. Increase the rate to 25 pounds if
a heavy mulch is being used. Alternatively, the application may be split, applying half of the
recommended amount in mid-April and the second half four to six
weeks later. Pruning
Pruning is a vital part of maintaining a healthy raspberry planting.
This practice greatly inhibits the spread of raspberry diseases and
improves fruit quality and yield. Pruning should begin soon after
harvest is complete by removing all the canes that fruited. This
improves light penetration and air circulation for the canes that
will fruit next year. Also, remove any new canes that are growing
outside of the 12- to 18-inch row width, or show obvious symptoms of
insect or disease damage. In the spring before the buds break, thin
the remaining canes, leaving only four to five of the sturdiest per
foot of row. Spread the canes that are left onto the wires of the
trellis and tie them with twine or some other soft material. Everbearing or fall-bearing red raspberries bear a late-season crop
on first-year canes. If they are pruned in the same manner as the
summer-bearing types, they will bear two crops per season; one in
the summer on the second-year canes, and one in the fall on the
first-year canes. Everbearing raspberries can also be managed to
produce only the fall crop. Simply mow all the canes down early each spring. During the summer,
cut down any new canes that develop outside the 12- to 18- inch row
width and thin the remaining canes to about six inches apart,
leaving the sturdiest. This technique greatly reduces pruning labor,
but also eliminates the summer crop. Unfortunately, most everbearing
cultivars, such as Heritage, produce the fall crop too late in the
season to escape damage from frost in most of northern New England. For black and purple raspberries, pinch off the top four inches of
new canes when they reach about three feet in height. Blackberries
should be pinched when they reach four feet. This encourages the
canes to form side branches, or laterals, which will bear the fruit
in the following year. Remove all canes that fruited following
harvest. In the early spring, thin the remaining canes, leaving only
five to seven of the sturdiest per hill. Cut the side branches back
to 12 buds (usually about 12 inches in length) and tie the canes to
the wire or post for support. Remove all plant waste from the field after pruning and destroy it,
preferably by burning. Leaving dead canes in the planting will
encourage the spread of disease. Harvesting Raspberries
Raspberries are ready to pick when they easily separate from the
receptacle or core. Blackberries do not separate from the core, so
ripeness should be judged by color and taste. All bramble fruit are extremely perishable and should be harvested
frequently. To maintain fresh quality, place fruit in shallow
containers, no more than three fruit deep, and cool the fruit to 33
degrees F as quickly as possible. Fruit properly harvested and held
at this temperature can maintain fresh quality for three to seven
days. If the fruit is to be made into jam or jelly, process it
immediately, or freeze it until ready to use. Insect and Disease Management
A well kept raspberry planting can provide fruit for 10 to 20 years,
but viruses, fungi and several types of insects can greatly reduce
yield and may destroy the planting if they are not controlled. Many
problems can be prevented by proper planning and care. Select only raspberry cultivars that are very hardy, and plants that
are certified virus-free. If possible, destroy all wild brambles
within 600 feet of the planting. Encourage good air circulation by
having at least eight feet between your plant rows and keeping the
hedges to a 12-to 18-inch width. Prune your plants regularly to
promote healthy new growth and reduce the spread of diseases. Keep
the planting weed free to discourage insect pests and prevent
competition for water and nutrients. tenzicut | 
