I have had a red raspberry plant in my backyard for as long as I could remember, and while I love the fruit that the plant provides, it can be a bit difficult to care for from time to time. To ensure your Raspberry plants have a long and fruitful growing season, you might need to prune them. Here’s how!
To begin, you need to remove last years floricanes from the raspberry plant. You should only begin pruning a raspberry bush after it has been alive for one year. If there are any branches, leaves, or limbs on the bushes that have peeling (or graying) bark, it’s best to remove these.
If you have a lot of raspberry bushes, and they are planted in rows, it would be in your best interest to cut back the rows to 1 1/2 to 2 feet in width. It might be difficult to trim back the branches (especially the ones that look healthy!) but it is necessary when it comes to preventing disease amongst your plants.
Is there a branch that looks like it might have some insect damage? Trim it. The final step of pruning your bushes comes with thinning out any “weak” raspberry branches. Leave only the tallest, fullest, and lushest branches on the trees after you are done pruning!
It might be beneficial for your to attach your raspberry plants to a trellis. Space trellis arms at least 3 feet apart and keep them at least 4 feet off of the ground. Many gardeners find that V shaped trellises are best for raspberry plants. Using a trellis helps provide adequate airflow and sunshine which equals more berries!
Be sure to dispose of any cut raspberry floricanes, keeping them around your garden may attract disease and/or pests!
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