Growing Raspberries

Plan raspberries as a permanent row with room to reach the canes, water the roots and pick regularly. Before pruning anything, identify whether the variety fruits in summer or autumn.

By Simon Adams · Updated 25 October 2026

Choose plants for your space

A sunny, sheltered site with moisture-retentive, well-drained soil suits raspberries. They tolerate some shade, but avoid a position that remains waterlogged. For containers, choose a specifically compact variety rather than squeezing a vigorous row variety into a small pot.

Buy certified virus-free stock. Keep variety names and planting dates: a mixed row without labels makes pruning and judging performance unnecessarily difficult. Choose cropping times that fit when you will be at home to pick.

Plant and support the row

Plant bare-root canes during their dormant season, avoiding frozen or saturated ground. Follow the supplier’s spacing and planting-depth instructions. Install sturdy posts and wires before the row becomes crowded, and keep access along it clear.

For summer varieties, keeping young replacement canes separate from fruiting canes makes the later pruning job easier. Do not automatically shorten purchased long-cane summer raspberries: they are prepared to fruit on the supplied canes.

Prune summer-fruiting raspberries

Summer raspberries crop on canes grown the previous year. After the harvest, cut the canes that have just fruited to ground level. Retain strong new canes grown this season and tie them to the support for next summer. Remove weak or overcrowded growth. Cutting the whole row down would remove next year’s crop.

Prune autumn-fruiting raspberries

For a straightforward single autumn crop, cut the old canes down to ground level in late winter, usually February in the UK. The new season’s canes will carry that year’s harvest. This routine is different from the summer-fruiting method; confirm the label before cutting.

Prevent stress and cane damage

Maintain moisture during dry spells and use mulch to help the soil retain it. Keep mulch clear of the stem bases. Work carefully around canes: wounds can allow cane blight to enter. Keep growth spaced so it dries after rain and choose dry conditions for pruning.

If canes wither and die back, investigate before assuming the plants simply need more feed. Cane blight can darken and split the stem base. Remove affected canes following the linked disease guidance, disinfecting secateurs between cuts.

Watch plant health and pick often

Persistent pale mottling, weak growth and falling yields can indicate virus problems, although leaf colour alone is not a diagnosis. Do not expand the row using suckers from plants of uncertain health. Start replacements with clean stock rather than passing a problem into a new bed.

Raspberries are delicate and keep poorly. Plan to eat or preserve them promptly. For loose frozen berries, wash and dry them, freeze in a single layer, then transfer the frozen fruit to a labelled container. Record which varieties and harvest dates were useful before ordering more.