These single crop raspberries have a beautiful, intense, raspberry flavor. You’ll love them.
Long ago someone gave me heirloom raspberry canes that came from someone's grandmother's garden. They had the most wonderful flavorful raspberries I had ever tasted. When you walked past the raspberry patch when they were fruiting, the fragrance was nature's raspberry perfume.
About Raspberry Plants: Raspberries like an acid soil. Adding wood chips or conifer needles helps with this. They want full sun. Their roots dislike high temperatures. Unlike blueberries, who like wet feet, raspberries like well-drained soil. Once they are established, they won’t need much water after producing their crop. If you want plump berries, make sure they are hydrated during formation. They send out runners to propagate. You will have babies popping up all around your raspberry patch. These can easily be transplanted to share or expand your patch. Locate your patch carefully. Runners will come up in nearby beds.
Support: The canes of this variety of raspberry are long/tall and spindly. They need to be trellised. You will find a plethora of designs online.
Arching: Once your canes are supported, arch them. In an arched position, you will be able to reach your berries and, importantly, you will more than quintuple your harvest. The un-arched cane sends up a leader and sets blossoms and berries below the leader. On an arched cane, many leaders are sent up and each will produce blossoms and berries. Run your arch to another cane at a distance and bring that one back. Canes can also be fastened to your trellis. Bring your arch down to shoulder height. Run the arches front to back and side to side, so everyone gets sun. The new leaders will grow 1 to 2 more feet. Zip ties make easy work of arching.
Harvest: Your berries are ready to pick when they are a deep purply red. They will give slightly when you gently squeeze them. They will come off easily. If they put up a fight, they are not ready...even if they are red. These raspberries have a deep flavor and aroma. They won’t have the structural integrity of the berries designed for commercial harvesting (AKA they mush easily).
Storing Berries: Fresh picked berries and store-bought berries have mold on them. You just cannot see it. Dunk your berries in a 1-part white vinegar to 3-parts water solution for 2 minutes, then rinse. This process will make your berries last longer in storage. Berries can be placed in freezer bags or containers and stored in your freezer long after the season has ended.
Pruning: At the end of the growing season cut back the old growth, not the new growth. The old growth has produced berries and will never produce them again. When the leaves have fallen from the plant, cut the old growth to just a few inches off the ground. A pro tip for determining from the bottom of the cane whether it was a producer: Work at the top of the cane. Trace spent ones down as far as you can and cut it there. Once all of the old ones are trimmed to there, work from the bottom up and cut back all of the ones just trimmed. The canes that are left are new growth from this summer. They will be your berry producers next summer.
Easy Berry Pie: I can’t call it a recipe, because nothing is measured.
Make an oil pastry and press into pie pan.
Mash your berries
Stir in tapioca or arrow root flour
Pour berry mixture into pie crust.
Bake at 375 degrees until bubbly.
Let it set at room temp to cool, then put them in the refrigerator for an hour or so.
Now that I live in Central Texas, growing raspberries is but a fond memory. These summer bearing raspberries, as well as their fall bearing counterparts, are well worth the effort and garden space. You will love them as I did.
My trellis was made with wire and PVC pipe. Arched canes were held in place with zip ties.