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How to prune summer-fruiting raspberries
- BBC Gardeners' World Magazine
Published: Thursday, 12 September 2019 at 9:50 am
Keep summer raspberries cropping by pruning the canes – we show you when and how.
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Once your summer-fruiting raspberries have finished cropping, it's time to cut out the stems that bore fruit this year.
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This encourages new stems to grow from the base, which will carry fruit next summer. The suckering nature of raspberry plants means that if left unpruned they become very congested, produce small fruits, and outgrow their allocated space. Also, the fruited stems will gradually become weaker each year and eventually die.
In the above video, Monty explains how to prune summer raspberry cans after they have fruited.
For full advice on growing raspberries, check out our raspberries grow guide.
Find out how to prune summer-fruiting raspberries, below.
You Will Need
- Secateurs
Step 1
Harvesting raspberries
Once you have picked all the crop from summer-fruiting raspberries, loganberries and tayberries, you should prune out the old stems. Annual pruning keeps the plants vigorous and productive, so you get the best return from your plants for the space.
Step 2
Pruning out old raspberry stems
Work your way along the row, cutting out all the fruited stems right down at the base. It should be easy to spot these old stems, as they will be brown in colour and still carry the remains of the fruit stalks. Take care not to damage the bright green new stems.
Step 3
Ties-in raspberry canes
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Next, go back along the row and thin out any of the new stems that are overcrowded or weak, and remove any growing too far away from the row. Ideally the new stems should now be spaced about 20cm apart. Finally, tie them in to horizontal wire supports.
What about autumn-fruiting raspberries?
Autumn-fruiting raspberries produce canes that flower and fruit in the same year. Simply cut all their canes to the ground in winter, to allow new canes to grow come spring.
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