Raspberry
Rubus idaeus
Summer-caning bramble — a clove of garlic nearby wards its pests.
Light Full sun to part shade
Water Moderate
USDA zones 3a–9b
Height 1.5–2 m
Spread 23.6 in
Spacing 45–60 cm
Sow depth Medium
Spacing & sowing
- Plant spacing
- 19.7 in
- In-row spacing
- 17.7 in
- Between rows
- 5 ft 11 in
- Square-foot density
- Not suited to SFG
Calendar (from your frost dates)
- Plant out
- at the last spring frost
- First harvest
- 100 days after the last spring frost
- Harvest ends
- 30 days before the first fall frost
Growing
- Type
- Fruit · Perennial
- Botanical family
- Mixed / other
- Sunlight
- Full sun to part shade
- Watering
- Moderate
- Soil
- Rich, slightly acidic, moist
- Feeding
- A spring feed under a thick compost mulch.
- USDA zones
- 3a–9b
- Frost tolerant
- Yes
- Flowering
- April
- Pruning
- Cut the fruited canes back after harvest, timed to the type you grow.
Through the year
- Mar–Apr Bud Break
- Apr–May Flowering
- May–Jun Fruit Set
- Jun–Jul Harvest
- Jul–Oct Growing
- Oct–Dec Leaf Fall
- Jan–Mar Leaf Fall
Harvest
- When
- Summer-fruiting varieties crop late June–July on last year's canes; autumn (primocane) varieties from August to first frost on this year's canes. First proper crop in the second season for summer types.
- What to look for
- Deep, even color for the variety (red, gold, or black), and the berry slides off the central plug (receptacle) with the gentlest pull, leaving the plug behind. If you have to tug, it isn't ripe.
- How to harvest
- Cup the berry and pull gently with fingertips — no tools needed. The fruit is hollow and fragile, so lay berries no more than two or three deep in a shallow container.
- How often
- Every 1–2 days in warm weather; every 2–3 days otherwise. Berries ripen successively along the cane over several weeks.
- Storing the crop
- Very perishable — refrigerate immediately and eat within 2 days. One of the best fruits for freezing: open-freeze on a tray, then bag; they hold shape better than strawberries. Also superb for jam.
Companions
Garlic, Tansy, Marigolds, Turnips
Pests & problems
Did you know?
A raspberry is a cluster of tiny fruits; pick it and it slips off its core, leaving a hollow.
The Cottage Garden Companion — the gardener's herbarium at cottagegardencompanion.com