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Remontant Raspberries: Care, Pruning, and Cultivation

Remontant Raspberries: Care, Pruning, and Cultivation

Jan 21st 2025

Remontant raspberries are a variety of raspberries that produce fruit on the current year's shoots and sometimes again the following summer. They differ from their summer relatives in that they are capable of bearing fruit on both last year's canes and the current year's canes.

They are easier to grow than other varieties and don't require special protection from winter damage. With the correct variety selection and proper care, their fruiting can be extended for over a month.

If you want to learn how to properly care for and grow Remontant raspberries, this article will provide the basic knowledge needed to grow these raspberries in your garden.

How to Care for Remontant Raspberries in Your Garden

Raspberries should be planted in the spring. Choose a planting site that is in full sun. Plants can grow in partial shade but will not produce much fruit. Raspberry plants need rich, well-drained soil. A few inches of mixed compost before planting will create a high-quality planting site.

Keeping Your Raspberries Productive

Fertilize and mulch your raspberry plants. Raspberries are heavy feeders and generally need to be fertilized. They enjoy a 2-to-3-inch layer of mulch, such as leaves, lawn clippings, and wood chips or shavings. Make sure these mulch materials are weed free.

Managing pests and diseases

Keeping plants healthy and well cared for is the strategy for preventing pests' issues. Always watch your plants closely and look for signs of disease and pests to prevent damage to your plants. One of the most effective measures is to improve air circulation by proper thinning, pruning, and weed control.

Some common Raspberry problems are

  • Cane Blight can cause the dieback of canes on raspberries.
  • Gray Mold is one of raspberries' most common causes of fruit rot.
  • Phytophthora crown and root rot causes canes to die back due to an infection at the crown or base of canes

These issues can be prevented by selecting a well-drained planting site and proper watering.

Feeding Remontant Raspberries After Harvesting

Unlike summer raspberries, remontant varieties do not tolerate organic feeding in the fall. Organic fertilizers usually contain a lot of nitrogen, which the bushes don't have time to process in the fall. Therefore, it's better to opt for nitrogen-free mineral complexes.

Watering Remontant Raspberries After Harvesting

Remontant raspberries require plenty of moisture throughout the season to achieve a high yield. They should be watered at least once a week, ensuring the soil is moist to a depth of up to 12 inches. Proper watering can be achieved using drip irrigation.

After harvesting, the amount of water can be reduced. However, a couple of weeks before the frost, it's necessary to water the plants thoroughly, loosen the soil around them with a garden tool, and mulch with straw, peat, hay, sawdust, or other materials.

Pruning Remontant Raspberries After Harvesting

To get the maximum yield from the bush, many gardeners do not remove enough canes from the remontant raspberries in the fall but leave several strong ones. Leaving too many canes will harm the plant, weaken it, make it more susceptible to diseases, and lead to the loss of fruit quality.

To prevent a weak plant, remove all the large canes of the remontant raspberry. The canes should be cut down for winter; do not leave either branches or stumps. It's best not to delay pruning until spring, as raspberry thickets make a good wintering spot for insect pests and fungal spores.

Want to experiment with getting two harvests? Then, during fall pruning (in November), leave 5-6 strong canes on each bush, trim them by a third, and cover them for the winter by bending them to the ground. In spring, check how they overwintered, remove any frozen or rotted canes, and leave the rest. Be sure to clear out small raspberry shoots in a timely manner so the bushes don't get overcrowded.

Wrapping it Up

By following these tips on watering, care, and harvesting, your remontant raspberries will thrive and produce delicious fruit throughout the season. Enjoy the sweet rewards of your hard work.

We hope that the raspberries in your garden will now thrive and reward you with an abundance of berries year after year. The key is to choose the right variety and properly care for the bushes throughout the season.