Growing raspberries in Portland’s maritime climate may seem like the sort of gardening that shouldn’t require much explanation. In a city where we spend a significant portion of our time fighting off the “Invasion of the Himalayan Blackberry”, it would seem logical that we should only need to plant them once and await our harvest.
It
is true that simply planting any cane berry in the Pacific Northwest
will result in a harvest (and a full-fledged gargantu-bramble). But
following these five steps will ensure that they remain productive,
easy to harvest and without disease.
- Plant in a well-drained location: Raspberries don’t like to sit underwater all winter and spring, so make sure they have soil that drains well.
- Consistent watering is important: Most Portland gardens won’t need much supplemental water until July. Once the rains stop, make sure the canes get 1 to 1.5 inches of water a week. Mulch in summer to help with even moisture and reduce weeds.
- Feed twice a year: Feed raspberries twice a season, once in early spring and once about 60 days later. I like to use a multipurpose organic fertilizer for acid loving plants, and then back that up with a shot of mycorrhizal fungi.
- Use a trellising system: Growing raspberries in rows with a trellis helps reduce disease and pest problems, not to mention that it makes the harvest so much easier.
- Prune, prune, prune: This is the step
where most of us loose our nerve. In order for raspberries to be at
their best, canes need to be pruned in three ways. Start in early
spring, by thinning crowns to the four or five canes that have the
largest diameter (this can also be done at the end of summer). Then,
remove all small plants that have popped up outside of the row and
continue to do so throughout the summer. Finally, after harvest, prune
to remove all canes that bore fruit, as they will no longer be
productive.
These
two pictures were taken a month apart, the first towards the beginning
of April. You can see how it looks as if there are very few berries.
But take a look to the left...they take over the trellis in a matter of
days.
I am most definitely the type of gardener that avoids extra work, if at all possible. In this case, these five steps help reduce the likelihood of disease and make the harvest short work. Follow these easy steps and you will be snacking on bushels of berries in no time!
And don't forget to tune in to the Good Enough Gardening Podcast...show topic this week: "All Alliums All the Time".
I had raspberries on the mind this weekend too! Thinking about trellising them. The plants aren't even knee-high yet this year, maybe they need the fertilizer food?
http://www.poweredbytofu.com/
Posted by: Powered by Tofu | May 18, 2009 at 08:21 AM