Do I need to prune raspberries in summer? How to properly prune raspberries in the fall

Raspberry is a prickly deciduous subshrub. Its shoots grow up to 2 - 2.5 meters in height. At good care, in one place it can bear fruit for 10 years or more. In garden plots you can find regular and remontant raspberries.

The remontant crop bears fruit on one- and two-year-old shoots. The fruits constantly ripen on young shoots from late summer until the autumn cold. But in the second year the quantity and quality of the berries deteriorates, so it is grown as an annual. In autumn, remontant raspberries must be cut at ground level. In the spring, new strong shoots will grow in this place, bloom and delight you with a fragrant harvest.

Regular raspberries are perennials with a two-year development cycle. Raspberry stems grown this year are called annual growth. They are fluffy, only near the ground they are covered with dark-colored spines. Those that grew up last year are called biennial fruit bearing. They are strong and prickly. Fruiting occurs on shoots of the second year. Therefore, we must strive to create best conditions for the growth of shoots in the first year in order to obtain a bountiful harvest in the second.

Although raspberries are a low-demanding crop, they require constant thinning of the bushes. Otherwise, the raspberry tree will become overgrown and the crop yield will drop. Growing strongly, the offspring interfere with each other. There is a deficiency of sunlight, moisture, nutrition and air. Under such conditions, the stems weaken and sometimes die. Poor ventilation causes diseases to develop and creates suitable conditions for pests. The plant struggles to survive, severely depleting the soil. The berries become smaller and the harvest deteriorates.

For normal development and growth of raspberries, constant care is required. It consists of thinning the crop throughout the season. The first pruning is carried out after planting in the ground. The bush must be shortened to 40 cm and mulched. Thanks to these actions, the raspberry rhizome grows quickly and produces many replacement shoots and root suckers.

Since there is no particular point in constantly thinning out remontant raspberries, because their shoots are renewed annually due to autumn pruning, in this article we will look at pruning regular raspberries.

Spring thinning of raspberries

In early spring When the temperature has reached above zero and the snow has melted, the raspberry bushes are inspected. Dry, broken, underdeveloped shoots are removed with garden pruners. Diseased and frozen parts are cut out. To ensure that the plant has enough air and light, leave about 10 - 15 trunks per linear meter. The remaining stems are cut at the root. All the remaining ones are shortened by 20 - 25 cm so that the bush is about 1.5 m in height. This technique stimulates the growth of side shoots. Racemose inflorescences subsequently form on them. In addition, the bushes will not grow in height, and the saved food will go to the berries.

Summer thinning

Raspberry is a plant predisposed to active growth, which requires control of the development of young shoots. Two-year-old shoots, gradually darkening, become woody and, at the end of fruiting, dry out. In their place, replacement shoots grow intensively. After picking the berries, it is necessary to cut out the two-year-old stems without leaving a stump, since they will no longer bear fruit and require nutrition. In addition, two-year-old shoots create strong shading, preventing young shoots from developing. At the same time, it is necessary to remove weak annual shoots up to 50 cm long, growing in groups (root shoots). This procedure is carried out repeatedly during the summer.

Sometimes many young shoots grow from one rhizome. To prevent the gap between plantings from becoming overgrown, shoots are left only within a radius of 20–30 cm, the rest are removed. There is no need to be afraid to remove excess green mass, as it takes away nutrients from the fruiting raspberry shoots, solar energy, moisture reserves and space for fresh air. The strongest shoots are left, the rest are removed with a shovel or pruning shears. All plants that grow beyond the raspberry bush are dug up or transplanted to the right place. During raspberry flowering, the stems should be regularly inspected to identify diseases. All yellow or wilted shoots and leaves are immediately cut out and burned to remove larvae and spores.

Autumn thinning

15-20 days before the onset of cold weather (in some areas - the end of September, in others - the beginning of October) autumn pruning raspberries If you did not cut out the fruiting stems in the summer, then this must be done in the fall. Carefully lifting the shoots, carefully examine the bushes. Old shoots that have borne fruit are identified. Those who are sick, broken or withered are not allowed through. And also thin, frail and underdeveloped processes. Using a sharp garden pruner, everything is cut out at the root, without leaving any stumps. Removed shoots and shoots are burned. In a raspberry garden there should be about 60 cm between the bushes. The space between the plants is cleared of young growth with a shovel. In this way, unnecessary greenery, weeds, and pests are destroyed. There is additional access to air and sunlight to the plants. This has a very beneficial effect on the future harvest.

Thanks to timely pruning, strong and healthy plants will bloom in the spring. Raspberry bushes will delight bountiful harvest fragrant and juicy berries.

Raspberries, like other garden crops, require careful and constant care. Only with sufficient watering, fertilizing, loosening the soil and removing weeds can you count on good harvests. Also for proper development bushes need to be pruned in a timely manner. Below we will tell you what pruning raspberries is, why you need to carry out such manipulations and get acquainted with different types trim.

As a rule, raspberry embryos appear on the shoots of the second year of life. Although there are special remontant varieties that begin to produce crops in the first year. Both types of raspberries require shoot renewal. After the second year of growth, the fruiting shoots begin to hurt and lose their former strength and ability to set berries.

In addition, without proper pruning, up to 20 shoots may appear on the bush in the spring, which create unnecessary density in the planting. The abundance of extra stems leads to a decrease in berries and yield, since the plant spends energy on the development of barren shoots. In such thickets it is much easier for pests to infest and plant diseases to spread. Often such shoots of unpruned bushes grow sluggish; they do not gain strength before wintering and freeze slightly. It is absolutely obvious that knowing how to trim raspberries is necessary and useful information, allowing you to form healthy and productive bushes.

detailed instructions

Removal of shoots and shortening of shoots is carried out 3 times a year - in spring, autumn and summer. Moreover, each pruning carries certain goals. in spring this procedure are planned for March-April, depending on the climate.

First of all, inspect all the bushes and remove frozen and unhealthy stems. Now, from all that remains, select the strongest shoots, and cut off the rest at the very base. If the raspberries have frozen tops, then they are cut off to 1 healthy bud.

After this, you need to carefully monitor the regrowth of young stems. The number of shoots should not exceed 40 pieces per 1 linear meter of planting. After the young shoots grow to 30 centimeters, all excess will need to be removed. It is these young branches that will become the basis for the ovaries next year. In the summer, when the raspberry crop is harvested, immediately get rid of the fruiting shoots. They will no longer produce crops, so they are cut out at the very base. A special place in proper care

For raspberries, it takes removing the shoots. New shoots should not be allowed to appear further than at a distance of 20 centimeters from the center of the bush. Therefore, all shoots that have moved to the side must be removed immediately. As soon as they come out of the ground. Pruning raspberries in the fall involves removing fruit-bearing stems (if you did not do this in the summer), diseased, broken and dried branches. Everything that remains needs to be carefully tilted and pinned to the ground so that the shoots are covered with snow and do not freeze. With frost-resistant varieties, such manipulation is not necessary.

Video “Instructions for Dummies”

Annual bushes

Annual raspberries are called remontant. They have their own characteristics for care and pruning. After harvesting, around September-October, it is necessary to completely cut off all shoots, leaving no stumps. In the spring you will see a lot of new growth appearing from the rhizome. At the same time, many shoots will be clearly weaker than others. You will need to get rid of them. If you do not thin out the young bush in the spring, then in the summer thickets will form in the raspberries, where pests and diseases will begin to appear. It will also have a detrimental effect on the harvest. After the next collection of berries, everything is cut out again at the root. Such constant updating carries with it a lot of positive points

. In general, it can be noted that caring for annual raspberries is much easier than caring for ordinary ones.

Double trimming Proper double pruning of raspberries shows excellent results on different varieties . At the same time, gardeners need to understand that this method requires a special attitude to caring for the crop as a whole. You will have to think about this at the stage of planting seedlings. It is necessary to fertilize the furrows without sparing with mineral and. Further, it is also important to monitor the appearance of weeds, pests, and loosening of the soil. Only when high level care, you can count on further results.

This pruning method was founded by the famous gardener A. G. Sobolev. He recommends making the first pruning at last days May or early June. Until this time, young shoots reach a size of 70-100 centimeters.

The very tip of the shoot is plucked off at a distance of 10-15 centimeters from the top. This manipulation stimulates the growth of lateral stems. By the end of summer, these new shoots can grow up to 50 centimeters. Remember that the first pruning of raspberries according to Sobolev must be carried out within a strictly agreed time frame, otherwise the side stems will not have time to grow stronger before the onset of autumn cold weather.

In autumn the bushes are thinned out. Sobolev himself removed the shoots, left 4 shoots on each bush and made sure that the free space between the bushes was about 2 meters. Do not forget about other care measures. A second round of double pruning is planned for next spring. When the bushes are covered with green foliage, you need to remove the tops of 5-10 centimeters of all surviving shoots. If you carry out this pruning correctly, dormant buds will begin to awaken on the bushes, new fruitful shoots will begin to grow, and there will be many times more ovaries.

Video “Pruning on the site”

You will learn how to properly care for your personal plot and, in particular, how to properly care for raspberry bushes.

A novice gardener may lack knowledge about how and when to prune raspberries for maximum yield. First of all, he should know that this is a shrub consisting of aboveground and underground parts. Its fruiting always occurs on shoots at the age of two years, which die off immediately after this process. New shoots, in turn, grow from repair buds that appear on the rhizome of the plant. During the first year, these shoots grow intensively, and at the beginning of the second they produce flower buds and fruits.

How to prune raspberries in summer?

This shrub is usually pruned in late summer or early autumn. The procedure is carried out immediately after the end of fruiting. At this time, the gardener removes all spent shoots and performs additional sanitary pruning. During this process, all broken and weak raspberry branches are completely removed.

In order to create optimal light and air conditions for raspberries, it is necessary to remove most her escapes. The norm is to leave from eight to twelve annual shoots per 1 linear meter of shrub. Removed parts of the bush must be burned, since in most cases they contain various spores of fungal diseases and pests.

How to prune raspberry bushes?

Usually this procedure begins in early spring. At this time, the tops of the bush are slightly shortened: about ten to fifteen centimeters. This approach allows you to slow down the development of shoots and direct the main flow useful substances to flower buds, which, in turn, allows you to get a bountiful harvest in mid-July.

Some gardeners wonder how and when to prune raspberries to obtain a long fruiting period. During spring procedure shoots are shortened to different lengths. To do this, they are divided into three relatively equal groups. The first ones have about fifteen centimeters removed, the second ones are shortened by half, and the third ones are cut off almost completely, leaving about ten to twenty centimeters. This method allows you to obtain gradual ripening of berries, starting from the tenth of July and ending with the first days of September.

How and when to double trim raspberries?

In the last few years, gardeners have been practicing the so-called double pruning method, which allows increasing the yield of shrubs due to the formation of lateral fruiting branches. To do this, at the very beginning of June, restoration shoots that have reached a meter in height are pinched, removing the top by about five centimeters. This procedure allows you to awaken the side buds and get several side branches by autumn. Next spring they are pruned again by ten centimeters, which allows them to get a plentiful additional harvest.

Any novice gardener will be interested in how and when to prune raspberries to increase their fruiting properties. The most important rule during this process, do not allow the bush to thicken. If you thin out raspberries in time and monitor their health, you can enjoy a bountiful harvest of sweet and incredibly healthy berries every year.

Timely removal of unnecessary parts of the plant has great importance for the growth and fruiting of any shrub, including raspberries. Such a procedure as pruning raspberries in summer is often ignored by inexperienced gardeners, which causes harm to the bush. Raspberries are considered an unpretentious crop, but this is not so. Without proper care, it gradually runs wild, grows uncontrollably, and the berries become small, dry and tasteless. Only with careful, timely and regular care, which includes watering, fertilizing, loosening the soil, pruning and killing weeds, can you count on a good harvest.

As a rule, berries appear on shoots of the second year of life. The exception is remontant varieties, the bushes of which are capable of bearing fruit in the first year. But even for them, it is recommended to carry out summer pruning, which allows for one high-quality harvest per year.

If we talk about ordinary garden varieties, then ideal for them is pruning in three stages - in spring, summer and autumn.

Pruning raspberries at different times of the year

Spring pruning prevents the development of unnecessary dense growth, which will slow down the growth and fruiting of bushes. Autumn - allows you to prepare plants for winter and the new season that follows. And pruning raspberries in the summer after fruiting is aimed at removing all the branches that have fulfilled their function. If you do it correctly and regularly, the result will not be long in coming.

A well-groomed raspberry tree will delight you with its appearance and abundant harvest, but a neglected and wild one is unlikely to bring any benefit. In nature, thinning is carried out by wild animals that wander into raspberry thickets and partially trample them. Well, on their own plots, gardeners have to take on this function. Armed with pruning shears and a shovel, they can significantly improve the condition of this beautiful plant.

How to properly carry out summer pruning?

An important part of comprehensive shrub care is summer pruning of raspberries. It is usually carried out in two stages, since the scheme for pruning raspberries in summer may include activities after flowering and after fruiting. At the beginning of summer, it is worth removing all disease-prone, weak stems and yellowed leaves. They will only take away the strength necessary for the ripening of large and juicy berries.

In addition, infected areas can destroy all raspberry plantations. So you should approach this issue carefully and carefully. At the same time, it is recommended to get rid of unnecessary growth. It can be used for more extensive planting or simply destroyed.

As a rule, in the summer, raspberries are pruned in July or August, when the berries have already been harvested.

All fruit-bearing shoots should be removed; they are no longer of practical use. The procedure is carried out using ordinary pruning shears. The shoot must be cut at the root, without leaving the above-ground part. Best time, which provides correct pruning raspberries in the summer - immediately after harvest. You shouldn’t delay it or put it off until the fall.

So why do you need to prune raspberries in summer?

Summer pruning of raspberries has a huge impact on the quality of the crop. In order for it to be plentiful, large and tasty, it is necessary to prevent the bushes from growing in width or height. This is why young raspberry shoots are pruned in the summer. If you do not neglect this procedure, the raspberry tree will be constantly updated. Bushes without excessive growth, outdated stems and diseased parts are capable of producing the most successful harvest. The main rule here is regularity; you shouldn’t wait for autumn or spring to help the plant get rid of everything unnecessary.

Raspberries are valuable berry crop of the Rosaceae family and is widely cultivated in all climatic zones except the Far North, desert and semi-desert. By origin it is wild berry. The fruits contain sugars, vitamins C, A, group B, organic acids, and pectin. The presence of salicylic acid causes an antipyretic effect, so eating berries during a cold significantly alleviates symptoms and shortens the duration of the disease. Raspberries are grown in almost every garden, but not all gardeners know when and how to prune raspberries in order to achieve high yields and large berries. Let's look at these questions in detail.

Why is raspberry pruning necessary?

It is impossible to do without pruning bushes, since it is dictated by the biological characteristics of the crop. This agricultural technique allows you to get a high yield; the berries from pruned bushes are larger and sweeter. The bushes are well illuminated by the sun and ventilated, and are less affected by fungal and bacterial diseases. The entire plantation looks aesthetically pleasing; root shoots do not fill the entire space of the site.

Biological features

By its nature, raspberries are subshrubs that reproduce in the natural environment by root suckers. Cultivated varieties that are grown in gardens have retained this feature of their ancestors. If you do not remove their root shoots and do not prune the bushes themselves, the yield is significantly reduced. The operation allows you to maintain a balance within the plant between the distribution nutrients on vegetative growth and crop formation.

Another important biological feature is fruiting on the shoots of the previous year, which die off after the berries ripen. On last year's shoots, fruit branches are formed - laterals, which bear fruits collected in clusters. Pruning stimulates the formation of laterals, allows more berries ripen and become larger.

In ordinary raspberry varieties, new shoots growing this year will produce a harvest the next year, while in remontant varieties, the berries will appear by the end of summer, and usually their ripening continues until the onset of frost. Here it is important to understand when to prune remontant raspberries for the winter in order to ensure active growth and fruiting for the bushes. next year. In both types of varieties, old fruit-bearing shoots must be removed, otherwise the entire plantation quickly ages, takes on an unkempt appearance and loses its productivity.

When to prune raspberries correctly

Raspberries in general unpretentious plant. It is most correct to prune it in the summer after harvesting, while simultaneously pruning dead shoots, normalizing the bush and removing shoots. In Siberia and the Urals, it is good to prune raspberries in July or early August.

One-time summer pruning ensures good productivity of bushes with easy care. However, in order to achieve maximum yield and longevity of plants, one-time pruning is not enough. A whole series of operations with the bush are still needed. In fact, they are held throughout the season. So, year-round operations include:

1. spring pruning of the tops of shoots to different heights;
2. rationing the number of shoots at the beginning of summer;
3. removal of dead shoots in July-August;
4. rationing of young shoots in August;
5. autumn rationing or complete cutting of shoots remontant varieties in October.

Below we will look at each procedure in more detail.

Tool preparation

The following tools are useful for pruning raspberries:

1. pruning shears with a sharp blade;
2. garden shears with long handles;
3. garden saw;
4. mittens or thick gloves.

The pruning shears and garden shears must be well sharpened, with an adjusted return mechanism, that is, it must return to the “open” position without effort, otherwise the hand will get very tired when working. To remove dirt and disinfect the cutting surfaces of all tools, use chlorhexidine, potassium permanganate solution, any alcohol or acetic acid. The instrument is immersed in a disinfectant liquid or treated with a spray bottle. During work, to prevent the transmission of fungal, viral or bacterial diseases from bush to bush, it is advisable to periodically wipe the blades with alcohol wipes or use a medical disinfectant spray.

If the plantation is planted near a hedge, then getting to the outer shoots of large bushes can be very difficult. Scissors with long handles, similar to those used to trim bushes, will come to the rescue. If you work with pruning shears, you can trim by grasping the shoots low with your other hand. Scissors are also easy to trim the tops of tall, upright varieties in the spring.

Procedure for pruning regular raspberries

In the spring, check the bushes to see how they overwintered. Blackened and frozen branches are removed. The tops of healthy shoots are cut with scissors to different heights to allow the berries to develop in all tiers. The most developed and thick branches are cut to 12-15 cm, the thinner ones to 15-30 cm, and the weakest ones to 30-40 cm. Thus, weak shoots will be able to get stronger and produce large and juicy berries rather than small and limp berries. The upper buds on the shoots mostly bear rudimentary and underdeveloped berries. If you do not trim the tops, the plant will spend too many nutrients on their development and other berries will become smaller.

At the beginning of June, you need to count how many young shoots have developed on each bush and bring their number to the norm of 7-12 pieces. You need to cut out underdeveloped branches that grow too close and shade each other. The remaining powerful shoots, as they reach a height of more than 1 m, are fixed on a trellis. After about a month, the harvest begins to ripen. On some varieties, at this time stepsons may form in the axils of the buds; they are carefully cut off with pruning shears - stepsons are removed.

After harvesting, fruit-bearing shoots are cut out, sometimes without waiting for them to completely die. During this period, the bushes produce root shoots especially strongly. If you are not going to plant this raspberry variety, there is no need to save the shoots. If they are not cut out, they greatly weaken the mother plant, which may even die soon.

Choose the minimum cutting height for fruit-bearing branches. Best option when “stumps” from cuts no higher than 1.5 cm remain above the ground. Overgrowth shoots must be dug up and cut to a depth of at least 5 cm.

Autumn is the time to think about how plants will survive the winter. Most cultivated varieties have high winter hardiness and can overwinter open. In regions with harsh winters, it may be necessary to bend the shoots to the ground and mulch the soil in the plantation strip with old manure.

Procedure for pruning remontant raspberries and feeding

Remontant raspberries bear fruit twice a season. Almost all varieties get more berries during the second harvest within 3-4 weeks. With this variety of raspberries, it is important to ensure that new productive shoots begin to grow vigorously at the beginning of summer. To do this, they need to be well fertilized. In the first ten days of June, fertilizing with infusion is needed bird droppings: 2 kg of dry litter is poured into 10 liters of water, left for 5-7 days, then diluted in a ratio of 1:10. This solution is used to water 4-5 liters for each bush.

Fertilizing and spraying raspberries in spring gives good results. ammonia. You need to start feeding when a stable average daily air temperature reaches 10º C. For watering, prepare a solution of 2-3 tablespoons per bucket of water. This product also helps plants resist diseases and pests in the form of spraying. Tar soap (2 tablespoons) is added to the treatment solution for better adhesion of the active ingredients and disinfection.

If strong bushes are formed, they will be able to provide food to 10-12 branches. But when the bush weakens, you cannot leave more than 4-5 shoots. During the flowering period, the tops can be trimmed slightly for better berry set.

It is advisable to fertilize raspberries with potassium in early autumn. The berries will become sweeter and larger. You can use potassium chloride or give 1 glass for each bush wood ash(you should not use ash from the stove if you used newspaper to light the firewood, since newspaper inks contain lead which can get into the berries). Harvesting should be done gradually. In years with early frosts, the middle and late harvest may not ripen. The berries can still be collected, dried and used to make herbal tea in winter.

You need to prune remontant raspberries in the fall at the most late date before the onset of frost. Cut out all weakened, damaged and shading shoots. The rest are bent to the ground and secured with wire pins.

Double pruning raspberries

To reap a high yield during the second harvest, remontant raspberries are double pruned. This means that in July-early August, fruit-bearing shoots are cut out, and in October, absolutely all shoots on the plantation are removed. Branch cuttings are harvested for cuttings for subsequent propagation in the spring.

This technique allows you to completely get rid of wintering pests and there is no danger of the branches freezing. The roots are covered with organic mulch. In the spring, give fertilizer with a high nitrogen content. Early harvest in this case the plants will not produce, but the second one will be very tall. On field raspberry plantations, one late harvest covers both harvests in terms of quantity and quality of berries.

Conditions for high raspberry productivity and other tips

Pruning is undoubtedly an important agricultural practice, but it is far from the only one on which the harvest depends. Raspberries love to grow in open areas sunny places with fertile, well-permeable soil. The reaction of the soil solution should be neutral or slightly acidic. If there are trees or a vegetable garden nearby, the bushes may be suppressed due to an unfavorable neighborhood. Thus, bushes may die if cherries, grapes, sea buckthorn, hosts, garlic, radishes or beans grow nearby.

Plants need regular watering, fertilizing, and mulching of the soil. Among the pests, the mite has a depressing effect on raspberries. In early spring, during the period of full bud break, it is good to treat with Fitoverm. This is an effective biological product that will significantly improve the health of the entire plantation.

We advise every gardener to develop his own calendar for caring for his favorite berries, taking into account the recommendations given and the opportunity to devote time to the garden. Try to trim raspberries correct timing. Remember, summer pruning is very important. Remontant raspberries can be completely pruned for the winter. In spring it is important to feed the bush well. We wish you good luck and high harvests!