Raspberries: planting, pruning and care

Botanical description

Raspberry is a small fruit belonging to the family Rosaceae, like Strawberry, dog rose or Bramble (blackberry) which also bears the same genus name Rubus. The Rubus are bushes or climbing, deciduous or evergreen plants native to Eurasia. Some Rubus are valued for their ornamental qualities such as Rubus cockburnianus, with magnificent waxy white stems, or Rubus phoenicolasius whose shoots are covered in red hairs. Raspberry Rubus idaeus, cultivated mainly for its fruit, is a thorny bramble with bright green compound foliage quite decorative thanks to its pruinose underside. The species name idaeus refers in Latin to Mount Ida in Crete where raspberry grows naturally. It is also found in the Alps, Jura, Auvergne and many other European countries. Wild raspberry (Rubus idaeus) prefers cool climates where it can be encountered in mountain undergrowth, but also in lowlands, alongside elder, beech or rowan.

It is a deciduous bush with erect stems, forming a bush about 1.5 to 2 m in every direction over time. The biennial stems with reddish-brown bark die after fruiting but the plant continues to spread from its suckering stump, which produces new stems armed with small, not very sharp prickles each year.

Leaves bright green above, whitish-green and tomentose beneath are composed of 3 to 7 dentate leaflets and a petiole. They measure 10 to 15 cm long.

Rubus idaeus – botanical illustration

Flowering is very melliferous and consists of clusters of 10 to 12 white flowers, fairly small (0.5 to 1 cm diameter), not particularly decorative but highly attractive to insects. Flowers are borne at stem tips and then mid-cane in perpetual varieties. They are self-fertile, so there is no need to plant different varieties. Canes die after flowering at the end of their second year. Planting therefore requires dedicating a strip at least 50 cm wide and keeping a close eye to control suckers.

Fruits are small aggregated drupes, not adherent to the receptacle and which detach very easily at ripeness since generally only the edible fleshy part is picked. Brambles have an adherent receptacle, unlike raspberries.

Non-perpetual types produce raspberries from June to early August while perpetual varieties (also called “autumn” varieties) bear fruit first in September–October at the shoot tips and then in July of the following year on their lower parts before dying. It is however possible to concentrate production of perpetual varieties into a single period from August until first frosts by cutting back all canes in winter. Harvest then becomes single but larger. Production reaches normal level in the third year after planting. A plant can produce fruit for several years, about 10 years.

Raspberries are low in calories; they contain two particular sugars, levulose and fructose, and very little sucrose. Fruits also contain ellagic acid (a powerful antioxidant), tannic acid, vitamin C, and are a good source of potassium. It is also a medicinal plant whose young shoots and buds are used in gemmotherapy.

Main raspberry varieties

Our favourite non-perpetual varieties

Our favourite perpetual varieties

Thornless or dwarf varieties

Raspberry Magnific Delbard- Rubus idaeus

Non-perpetual variety producing very large fruits (10 - 12 g), dark red, fragrant, of excellent flavour. Fruits are firm, have good keeping quality and keep well. Offering a late crop in July and August, Magnific Delbard® is resistant to common raspberry diseases and drought.

• Flowering time June
• Height at maturity 1,20 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Malling Promise- Rubus idaeus

Productive and early non-perpetual variety, producing good-sized fruits, dark red, fairly firm and fragrant, easy to pick, from late June to August. It is a variety for training (2 m tall).

• Flowering time May, June
• Height at maturity 1,50 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Twotimer Sugana Red - Rubus idaeus

Perpetual variety producing very large, dark red fruits, fairly firm and easy to pick, of excellent flavour

• Height at maturity 1,50 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Zeva Herfsternte - Rubus idaeus

Very productive variety, offering large dark red fruits, very fragrant in June–July and again in September–October. It is a low-thorn variety.

• Height at maturity 1,50 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Blissy or Autumn Bliss (Everbearing) - Rubus ideaus

Perpetual variety, vigorous with medium suckering and productive. Large conical, very fragrant dark red fruits, easy to pick and with good holding quality (for tarts). The variety Blissy is one of the earliest among perpetuals, fruiting in June and again from mid-summer. Resistant to dieback.

• Flowering time June to August
• Height at maturity 1,50 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Glen Ample- Rubus idaeus

Non-perpetual variety producing large fragrant dark red fruits from early July. Stems or canes are thornless. This variety of Scottish origin offers good yields.

• Flowering time June, July
• Height at maturity 1,50 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Little Sweet Sister- Rubus idaeus

Dwarf thornless variety, reaching 1 m in height, ideal for balconies and terraces. Produces nicely sized, rounded fruits of an attractive dark red, with fairly sweet flavour. Very early harvest from mid-July and throughout summer.

• Flowering time June, July
• Height at maturity 1 m

See the product sheet

Raspberry Ruby Beauty- Rubus idaeus

Dwarf, compact and thornless non-perpetual variety, 80 cm to 1 m tall, ideal for balconies and terraces. Produces medium-sized, fragrant and sweet red fruits. Each plant can produce about 1.5 kg of fruit. Harvest in June and July.

• Flowering time June, July
• Height at maturity 90 cm

See the product sheet

Planting raspberries

Where to plant?

Raspberry bushes are found in warm climates as well as in upland areas, in full sun or partial shade. Raspberry prefers bright, semi-shaded aspects. Plant in loose, humus-bearing, well-drained soil that retains some coolness during summer because rooting is shallow. Calcareous soils cause leaf chlorosis (ideal pH between 6 and 7.5).

When to plant?

Planting is done from November to March for bare-root young plants and continues until June for young plants sold in buckets. Choose virus-free selected young plants rather than suckers gathered from a neighbour.

How to plant and train raspberry bushes?

The training enables the bush to benefit from maximum sun and makes harvest easier. If possible, plan for north–south oriented ranks so both faces receive sunlight, with row spacing of 1.5 m. Plan on a planting that will last 20 to 30 years.

• Stretch a framework of 3 horizontal wires, spaced 40 cm vertically: at 80 cm, 120 cm and 150 cm height. In a small garden, you can group 2 or 3 young plants around a 1.5 m stake.
• Work plot to 30 cm depth.
• Apply compost (2 to 3 barrowfuls per m²) then, if required, add a base fertiliser for fruit trees with magnesia at root level. If soil is calcareous, add turf and later provide a mulch made from acidic materials (pine needles or bark…).
• Plant one young plant every 60 cm to 1 m, keeping collar at correct level.
• Mulch with BRF, for example.
• When buds break in spring, cut back old cane to stimulate emission of suckers on underground stems.

Watch Olivier’s video on Dutch-style training of raspberry bushes.

In a container: place a layer of gravel or clay pebbles at bottom of a deep pot to improve drainage. Fill container with a mix of potting compost, garden soil and compost.

→ More advice in our tutorial How to plant a raspberry hedge?

Raspberry maintenance and pruning

To properly maintain your raspberry bushes :

• Add a layer of manure or compost, once a year in autumn, making sure to cover stubs left by pruning of fruiting canes.
• In spring, supplement with a ‘special berry’ fertiliser. Poor growth is more often due to a virus than to lack of fertiliser. In that case, pull up and burn the plant.
• Water the plant regularly to encourage rooting in the first year after planting. Thereafter, ensure it receives additional water during periods of high heat or extended drought.
• Renew soil mulch (BRF, dead leaves…) to maintain moisture and fertility.
• Watch for the appearance of suckers outside the row and carry out a thinning in June of new shoots when they reach 70 cm, keeping only 10 per metre or per bush after selecting them.
• Once harvest is completely finished, cut exhausted canes back to ground level.

Pruning raspberry bushes

This essentially involves cleaning dead wood and thinning new shoots that will fruit the following year, so that light penetrates sufficiently into the heart of the clump.

• For non-perpetual varieties, remove after harvest or in winter all shoots that have fruited as well as the weakest suckers, keeping only 8 to 10 shoots per linear metre or per clump.
• For perpetual varieties, prune the upper part of canes that have fruited in autumn and cut back completely shoots aged 2 years (often dried out). Select 6 to 8 suckers per linear metre. Alternatively: cut everything back to obtain a single autumn harvest.

To learn more, see this sheet: Pruning raspberries

Pruning of non-perpetual raspberry bush in winter

Diseases and pests of raspberry bushes

This undemanding bush is fairly resistant to diseases except when cultural conditions are not optimal, such as a cold spring: raspberry anthracnose, raspberry rust, powdery mildew, grey mould (Botrytis) can occur in rainy periods. To protect plants, it is recommended to feed raspberry bushes with organic fertilisers that promote multiplication of anaerobic bacteria in the soil, which strengthens the soil’s ability to stimulate plant immune systems.

Raspberry bushes can also be attacked by certain pests such as the raspberry worm, the larva of a small beetle that lodges in the fruit, although this does not usually cause significant damage. Hoe and weed the soil in winter to unearth buried cocoons so they are exposed to cold and natural predators. Apply a tansy manure to the plant from late April. The presence of forget-me-nots among raspberry bushes is also said to have a repellent effect.

→ Learn more with our advice sheet Diseases and pests of raspberry bushes

Harvest and storage

Harvest of raspberries

To be harvested, raspberries must be ripe, fully red (or yellow) all over their surface, otherwise they will not have developed their full flavour. But do not wait too long! They must not be crushed when picked. For this, check your raspberry canes every day! This may seem tedious, but rest assured, it is only for a relatively short period that comes to an end in the first weeks of August.

Storing raspberries

• Raspberries can be kept in the vegetable drawer of the fridge for up to 1 week with the firmest varieties. You can also freeze them as you pick, evenly spread out on a tray before gathering them into a freezer bag. They are then eaten in salads, used raw to make cakes or tarts…
• Turning them into jams, jellies, juices, coulis, ice creams or syrups is, of course, essential. Discover our raspberry jam recipe! and How to make homemade raspberry syrup?

Propagating raspberry plants

Given strong tendency of raspberry plants to sucker, it is very easy to separate suckers or divide the clump for less suckering varieties, preferably in autumn.

Dividing a raspberry plant’s stump

Using a well‑sharpened spade, separate suckers with 10 to 20 cm of rootstock.

You can also lift the entire stump and divide it into 2 to 4 sections with strong canes.

Replant them immediately, taking care that raspberry plant’s collar is not buried too deeply.

Water thoroughly before spreading mulch.

Find out more in our tutorial How to propagate raspberry plants?

Uses and associations

Combine several raspberry varieties, (by grouping perpetual varieties together to make pruning easier) on a strip about 1 m wide with suitable trellising to form a hedge. This layout makes maintenance easier and allows harvest over an extended period. This hedge can be used to border a vegetable garden, with a path that makes it easy to remove stray shoots. Raspberry plants can also be added to a country-style planting alongside currant bushes, serviceberries, garden blackberries, dogwoods, wild roses, cranberry or service tree, which produce edible, vitamin-rich fruits. Planting in containers on a balcony is also easy to achieve, especially with dwarf, thornless varieties.

Did you know?

Raspberry cultivation seems to date back to the late Middle Ages. In forests, five to ten years after felling of beech trees in particular, wild raspberries appear on the cleared ground; they then produce fruit for three to four years.

To supply nitrogen to the base of the raspberry plant, sow white or red clover, roughly dug in during spring with a garden fork. Presence of aromatic plants such as savoury, hyssop, clary sage or rue helps repel pests.