Berry bushes are considered unpretentious plants, and some gardeners think that they do not need to be cared for. Raspberries grow very quickly. The shoots that extend from the root draw juices from the bush and thicken the plantings. In the thickets, the ovary is poorly formed, but fungi that cause raspberry diseases are activated. Pruning old thorny branches in summer helps strengthen young shoots and helps them survive the cold. After the procedure, the berries are easier to pick.
- Why do you need to prune raspberries?
- To stimulate productivity
- Prevention of insects and diseases
- Forming the right bushes
- Optimal timing of the procedure (table)
- in spring
- In summer
- in autumn
- What tools are needed to carry out the work?
- Methods for pruning raspberries
- Specifics of double and triple pruning
- Biological features of pruning raspberries after fruiting
- Step-by-step pruning technology
- Regular raspberry varieties
- Trimming remontant raspberries
- Nuances of pruning varieties that produce one harvest
- How to care for and what to feed bushes after pruning
Why do you need to prune raspberries?
Gardeners who have been growing shrubs for many years claim that it is necessary to remove excess branches, but this must be done correctly.
To stimulate productivity
The shoots formed on raspberries in the first season do not produce berries. In almost all varieties of the crop, the buds that produce flowers are formed on 2-year-old shoots. After fruiting, they die off, but are replaced by new stems growing from the root. If you cut out dead branches in a timely manner, the young shoots will produce large berries next year.
Prevention of insects and diseases
If you leave all the young branches, the raspberry plantings become thickened, the ventilation of the plants is disrupted, and the rays of the sun cannot break through the thickets. Favorable conditions arise for the proliferation of fungi and pests appear.
Pruning raspberries after fruiting helps to avoid thickening and prevents the activation of pathogenic microorganisms that cause:
- mosaic;
- anthracnose;
- leaf curl;
- powdery mildew.
Removing old 2-year-old shoots makes it easier to pick berries and improves their taste. Fruits that ripen in the sun acquire sweetness. Plant diseases are observed less frequently.
Forming the right bushes
After pruning, raspberries look attractive, there are fewer thorny branches, and young stems develop better and gain strength to survive the cold season. Proper formation of bushes contributes to increased productivity.
Optimal timing of the procedure (table)
You can prune raspberries in any season, with the exception of winter; the first time the plant stem is shortened is when planting in the ground. The work is completed no later than a month before the onset of frost.
in spring
When cultivating berry bushes, you need to adhere to the rules of agricultural technology, which help preserve the characteristics of the variety and accelerate the development of shoots. In early spring, when the snow has just melted, all the branches look the same. The best time for pruning is determined by the condition of the buds. If they swell and try to open, it's time to start working. The tops of the shoots are shortened to different heights, which makes it possible to lengthen fruiting.
In summer
Pruning raspberries once is not enough to get excellent harvests of berries. In June, shoots are thinned out. As soon as July has arrived, dead branches are removed. In August, the number of young shoots is normalized.
in autumn
The pruning period is affected by the region where the raspberries grow. After picking the berries, the bushes are attacked by parasites. Insects settle in old branches, so dried shoots are burned. To have a good harvest, you need to learn when and how to prune raspberries in the fall.
The bushes will have time to stock up on nutrients if they are pruned not just before frost.
Using the table, it is easy to determine the optimal timing of autumn work.
Territory of Russia | Pruning month |
Southern regions | From 15.07 to 15.10 |
Middle lane | From 11.08 to 20.10 |
Siberia, Ural | All August |
The shoots of remontant raspberries are shortened in October, but should remain at least 3 weeks until autumn ends and winter sets in.
What tools are needed to carry out the work?
Equipment used for pruning raspberries must be disinfected in advance, otherwise an infectious disease can be transmitted through individual parts. To carry out gardening work you will need:
- Secateurs or special scissors. Using the tool it is convenient to deal with shoots.
- Lopper. Suitable for shortening thick stems.
- Knife. Allows you to correct unevenness.
Fallen leaves and dry shoots are raked with a rake. Alcohol, kerosene, vodka, and potassium permanganate solution are suitable for disinfecting equipment.
Methods for pruning raspberries
Varieties of berry bushes have different resistance to frost, bear fruit and grow differently. If pruning was not carried out in the summer, all work begins in the fall and for ordinary raspberries includes the removal of:
- at the root;
- two-year-old shoots;
- broken and diseased stems;
- damaged branches.
Young shoots are being thinned out. In addition to simple pruning, other methods of forming a bush are used. When shortening shoots of semi-remontant strawberries, you need to take into account its characteristics.
Specifics of double and triple pruning
To significantly increase the yield of berry crops in mid-latitudes, gardeners use the Sobolev method. At the end of spring, stems 80 cm high are shortened by 10 cm. The method helps to enhance the development of lateral shoots, stopping the growth of the top. By autumn, 8 branches appear on the bush, which are covered with spruce branches for the winter. When next spring comes, young side shoots, the height of which reaches 0.5 m, need to be pruned by 15 cm.
When using the Sobolev method, raspberries turn into a remontant variety and provide berries until the end of September.
Experienced gardeners shorten and remove dried shoots in spring, summer, and autumn, using the triple pruning method.By the end of the next growing season, 2-year-old raspberry stems are removed and the remaining shoots are thinned out.
Biological features of pruning raspberries after fruiting
If you shorten the branches after finishing picking berries, they have time to get stronger before frost. Old shoots are dying off by this time, and they must be removed so that pests do not infest the bark and fungal spores, which cause more than one disease, do not remain overwinter. Over the summer, a raspberry bush produces about 20 young branches, of which half are left.
Step-by-step pruning technology
After picking the berries, it is necessary to inspect each plant to identify damaged and dead shoots that should not be left.
Regular raspberry varieties
Before the procedure, you must carefully sharpen the pruning shears so that the wound is small. After disinfecting the instrument:
- Remove broken and diseased branches.
- Get rid of weak shoots that will not withstand frost.
- 2-year-old stems are cut out so that they do not shade the young shoots.
- They thin out thickened plantings, pull out weeds, cut down excess bushes to surface level, and dig up the soil.
After autumn or summer pruning, it is recommended to fertilize ordinary raspberry varieties with wood ash and treat them with iron sulfate. In Siberia and the Urals, young branches are bent to the ground for the winter and covered with spunbond or spruce branches, and old shoots are burned.
Trimming remontant raspberries
Many gardeners grow berry bushes, which produce not just one, but several harvests per season, and the fruits are set even on annual stems. In the southern regions, repair raspberries are pruned in the fall, in mid-latitudes - in the spring.
When growing a crop for one harvest, after the onset of frost, the bushes are shortened to the root. The procedure cannot be carried out earlier, otherwise the young shoots will sprout and the raspberries will die.
To obtain 2 harvests, the work is performed in 2 stages. Having collected the first berries, two-year-old shoots that bore fruit are cut out at the root. In the fall, dry, weak and diseased branches are removed and burned, and the bushes are fed.
Cumberland raspberries, which are black in color, grow very quickly. To increase its productivity, at the end of June, 2-meter-high stems are shortened by 20 cm, and young shoots are cut off at the growth point.
In October or November, when the bush goes into dormancy:
- Remove problematic branches.
- Get rid of weak stems directed inside the raspberries.
- Long shoots are shortened by a third.
- Two-year-old shoots are cut down to the ground.
Next year, raspberries will be laid on the side branches. Cumberland produces a large number of large fruits for a long time if up to 12 shoots are left.
Nuances of pruning varieties that produce one harvest
To ensure normal lighting of the bushes, to prevent the activation of pests, fungi, and viruses, on ordinary plant varieties that bear fruit once a season, during pruning:
- Use pruning shears to remove diseased and dried branches.
- Thin out annual shoots, leaving no more than 8 pieces on the bush.
- The stems are shortened by ¼ so that their height is up to 1.5 meters.
Raspberries will bear fruit longer if in the spring the branches are divided into 4 parts, the first ones are cut by 15 cm, the second ones by 20 cm, the third ones by half, and the last ones are removed to the stump.
How to care for and what to feed bushes after pruning
Regardless of when work on thinning and shortening shoots is carried out, raspberries need to be watered thoroughly.Caring for regular and remontant plant varieties after pruning includes fertilizing with organic matter or mineral fertilizers. Bird droppings are dissolved in water using a ratio of 1 to 30. Manure is applied to the ground, per 1 square meter. a meter is taken to be 6 kg. To increase productivity, the soil is diluted with peat.
If pruning is done in the fall, raspberries will need microelements. The bushes are fertilized with a complex containing phosphorus and potassium. Remontant varieties are fed with Bordeaux mixture. When the moisture is absorbed after watering, the planting soil is sprinkled with a thick layer of mulch. In regions where winters are harsh, raspberry shoots are tied and bent, covered with a thick layer of leaves, and a film is placed on top, in which holes are pierced.