Caring for raspberries in spring: the basics of double pruning. Care and cultivation of raspberries Working with raspberries in spring

Raspberries are a favorite berry in the country. In order for the shrub to constantly produce good yields of large berries, raspberries require careful care, especially in the spring.

Spring care includes a set of procedures that must be entered into the system and performed annually. Work in the raspberry field, which is carried out in the form of separate raids in the spring, will not bring benefit to the favorite berry, and the owner will not be satisfied in the form of a sweet harvest.

Raspberries.

When to start spring work in the raspberry garden?

Spring raspberry care begins in the first month of spring. The set of mandatory annual procedures includes:

• hot shower;
• pruning;
• soil care;
• garter;
• feeding;
• watering;
• pest protection;
• protection from diseases.

Hot shower for raspberries

• in early March, while there is still snow, they rake away the garbage that has accumulated over the winter from the raspberry bushes and take it out of the area (if this work is not done in the fall);
• garbage must be burned, since pests can overwinter in it, and half-rotted leaves can be infected with fungal diseases;
• heat the water to a boil and fill a 5 liter water bottle;
• From approximately a height of 0.7-1.0 meters, raspberry bushes are watered through a spout with a diffuser.

This procedure is harmless to raspberries. While the hot water reaches the bushes, its temperature will drop to +70°C and below. This water temperature will not harm dormant raspberry buds, but will cause the death of a significant number of pests, including nematodes, which cannot be gotten rid of with any poisons.

On average, 1 watering can of hot water is enough to treat 2–4 bushes. If the raspberry bushes are large (10-15 branches), use a 5 liter watering can for 2 bushes.

After a hot shower, as soon as the temperature is positive and the top layer of soil dries, the raspberry bushes are pruned and shaped.

Regardless of the method of planting raspberries, it is more practical to prune in 2 stages.

• at the first stage, weak growth, fruit-bearing, crooked, thickening branches and stems with swellings at the base are removed from the ground itself (the larvae of the gall midge overwinter there);
• thin out the remaining stems, leaving 6-8 stems for bush formation, and up to 15-20 stems per linear meter of area for strip (trench) planting. Thickening will lead to a decrease in yield and crushed berries.

The second stage of spring pruning of raspberries is carried out when a stable positive air temperature is established at least +5°C. During this period, the buds have already opened, the tops of the shoots of the crop have begun to grow, and it is clearly visible how the bush overwintered. The final revision involves removing missed fruit-bearing raspberry stems and frozen stem tips.

The tops of healthy raspberry stems are cut to a length of up to 20 cm in order to obtain additional lateral fruit-bearing shoots; frozen ones are cut back to the first living bud. Spring pruning of raspberries is important because it creates optimal conditions conducive to the formation of a bountiful harvest and increases the duration of the fruiting period of the crop.

Tillage in raspberry fields

After pruning, all residues are burned. In order not to trample the soil in the raspberry patch, you need to lay boards, pieces of smooth slate, and other bedding between the rows and work only from them, without stepping into the rows of the raspberry patch.

In the rows, the soil is loosened no deeper than 8-10 cm, destroying weeds, watered and mulched with a layer of up to 15 cm. Straw, compost, and humus are used as mulch for raspberries. Mulching will retain moisture, which quickly evaporates under the rays of the spring sun and winds. Organic mulch is a good source of nutrients for the raspberry root system. Do not mulch wet soils with close groundwater. They are only loosened after fertilizing and watering.

To prevent the raspberry plant from cluttering up new areas of the berry garden with shoots, it is fenced with smooth slate, galvanized sheeting, and other materials to a depth of 15-20 cm.

Raspberry garter

When grown in cold regions, raspberries are removed from their supports for the winter, which reduces the possibility of them freezing under negative weather conditions. If the trellis or bush method was used, then after pruning and cleaning the area, begin gartering the raspberry bushes. Trellis and stakes are most often used on large-fruited varieties.

With the trellis growing method, the distance between the raspberry bushes remains at least 60-70 cm. The stems fan out and are located on the trellis at a distance of 10-12 cm. Each stem is tied to a transverse wire in 2 places so that the top does not fall down.

When forming raspberries in bushes, a stake is driven between 2 bushes and half of the bush is tied to the stake (each stem separately). With this method of gartering, stepwise pruning of the stems is used. Each stem is cut to a different height - 10-15-20 cm.

When growing raspberries on supports, the plants do not shade each other, more berries ripen at the same time, and it is more convenient to harvest the fruits.

Spring feeding of raspberries

Despite the annual autumn application of fertilizers, raspberries are additionally fed in the spring. Fertilizing is especially necessary for raspberries on infertile soils. Fertilizers are applied in the form of solutions or solid granular forms. Fertilizers must be applied under watering and followed by mulching with a layer of mulch of at least 5 cm.

During the growing season, raspberries are fed 3 times.

The first feeding of raspberries is carried out immediately after the snow melts.

Usually, nitrophoska, kemira, complex mixtures, and other types of mineral fertilizers are added to raspberries. The norms of mineral fertilizers range from 60-80 g/sq.m. m. On depleted soils, fertilizer rates are increased to 80-100 g/sq. m.

You can add ammonium nitrate, but preferably potassium nitrate or urea at the rate of 30-40 g/sq.m. m with the simultaneous application of wood ash at 150 g/bush. Ash helps deoxidize the soil, which becomes acidified with frequent use of ammonium nitrate. In addition, ash contains a rich set of micro- and macroelements.

You can use organic fertilizers – humus or compost – at 3-5 kg/sq.m. every year or every other year for the first fertilizing. m.

After finishing fertilizing, the raspberry tree is watered. After absorbing the water, mulch with humus, peat, shavings, straw, and other types of mulch. When adding organic fertilizers to fertilizing, mulching with humus is not used.

The second feeding of raspberries (the phase of the beginning of ovary formation) is carried out after 25-30 days.

Typically this fertilizing is done with organic fertilizers. 0.5-1.0 kg of manure or bird droppings are diluted in 10-12 and 12-15 liters of water, respectively. The solution consumption per linear meter is 2-3 liters. Despite the application of fertilizers in the form of a solution, after fertilizing the soil must be watered and mulched.

If organic matter was added to the first feeding, then superphosphate and potassium salt are added to the second at the rate of 30-40 and 20-25 g/sq.m., respectively. m. area.

The third feeding of raspberries is carried out after the end of the harvest.

For shallow digging (15-20 cm) of row spacing, basic mineral fertilizer is applied at 80-120 g/sq.m. m. area.

Watering raspberries

Since raspberries are very sensitive to moisture supply, there is no strict watering schedule. They are carried out according to the state of the raspberry tree and weather conditions. Raspberries need especially frequent and sufficient watering during flowering and ovary formation. With a lack of water, the berries turn out small, dry, and bony. Watering is carried out along the furrows. The soil should be saturated with water up to a 10-15 cm layer. After watering, mulching is mandatory.

Protecting raspberries from diseases and pests

Like all garden crops, raspberries are susceptible to diseases (powdery mildew, anthracnose, purple spot and others) and pests (raspberry gall midge, mite, stem fly, raspberry beetle and others). It is prohibited to use chemical means of protection against pests and diseases on raspberries. Only treatment with biological products is allowed.

On raspberries, first of all, preventive measures are used:

• The area is kept clean of weeds, pruning residues and other debris, which can serve as a refuge for pests to breed and overwinter.
• Fertilizing and watering are carried out in accordance with the requirements of agricultural technology, so that excessive amounts of moisture and fertilizers do not provoke diseases of fungal and bacterial-viral infections.

Treatment of raspberries with chemicals

In early spring, before the buds open, raspberries are treated with a 3% solution of Bordeaux mixture. It is used separately from other drugs and agents.

Treatment of plants with biological products

When buds open, during the budding phase and at the beginning of flowering, raspberries can be treated for diseases:

• trichodermin,
• gliocladin,
• phytosporin-M,
• bactofyte,
• planrizom,
• Alirin-B.

• verticillin,
• bitoxybacillin,
• mycoafidin,
• aversectin-S,
• bicol,
• pecilomycin.

Bioinsecticidal and biofungicidal preparations can be used in tank mixtures according to the recommendations. The maximum effect is ensured by diluting biological products in accordance with the instructions. An increase in concentration, as well as a decrease, will not give the expected effect during processing.

Raspberries are known to everyone as a beautiful and useful shrub, from which, with the appropriate desire and skill, you can get berries throughout the season. But in order to achieve a consistently high yield, it is necessary to provide the bushes with normal nutrition, proper care, promptly and correctly trim the bushes, feed them and protect them from pests. Below we will look at how to care for raspberries in the spring, ensuring normal growth and fruiting of the raspberry tree.

It is recommended to begin spring work on caring for raspberry bushes immediately after the snow melts, when the average daytime temperature reaches 5 degrees. Typically these dates occur in March or early April.

The list of spring activities includes the following activities:

1. Inspecting the bushes to detect frost and some shortcomings that were not eliminated in the fall.
2. Cutting out fruit-bearing shoots if this was not done in the fall. The shoots are known to live only two years. In the first year, their active growth is observed, and in the second year they bear fruit, after which they die off. It is the two-year-old shoots that bear fruit that are cut out at the very base in the spring.
3. Bush trimming.
4. Soil cultivation.
5. Raspberry feeding.
6. Measures are being taken to combat raspberry pests and diseases.
7. The trellises are repaired, the wire is stretched, and the pruned shoots are tied up. If the bushes need to be opened after wintering, the covering material is rolled up and stored. After this, the raspberries are tied to the trellises. This prevents damage to it in strong winds or from the weight of its own fruits, and also makes it easier to care for the bushes.

Pruning raspberry bushes in spring

In early spring it is necessary to prune the bushes. If this is not done, the growth of the shoots weakens, many thin sprouts appear, which take over the strength of the bush. They do not bear fruit and do not allow the bush to develop.

In addition to fruit-bearing ones, damaged, frozen or rotten shoots are also cut out. Weak shoots are also removed, which contribute to the thickening of the planting.

Thus, the bushes are freed from unnecessary ballast. If the raspberries are planted using the bush method, then it is enough to leave 4-6 of the strongest shoots per bush. With a trench arrangement of rows, no more than 13-16 shoots are allowed per 1 linear meter.

The frozen tops of the shoots are trimmed down to living tissue.

Pruning technique

Strong and healthy shoots after winter need to be pruned technically correctly. This helps produce larger berries. Each shoot is cut to a height not exceeding 160 cm. If the shoots do not reach such a height, then they are cut off in any case.

Typically, the length of the cropped area does not exceed 25 cm. You can shorten raspberries more, but this will lead to a decrease in its yield. There are also other pruning methods developed by professional gardeners. Whether to use them or not, each person decides for himself.

Cutting to different lengths

This pruning method is used to obtain a harvest throughout the season.

All shoots are conditionally divided into 4 groups, which are shortened to different lengths:

1. Some shoots are shortened traditionally, by about 15 cm.
2. The second part is 30 cm.
3. The third part is half its length.
4. The last part is cut off almost near the base. Only a stump about 3 cm high is left.

The first harvest comes from traditionally pruned shoots. Then the next group, shortened by 30 cm, begins to bear fruit. The shoots that have been cut off almost completely are the last to bear fruit. Thus, the fruits will ripen until the end of summer.

Double pruning according to the Sobolev method

It has been noticed that double pruning is more effective than regular pruning. If you do this operation correctly, you can increase the yield by 2-3 times.

It is performed in this order:

1. The first pruning is done at the end of May. From young shoots that have reached a height of 80-100 cm, the tops 10-15 cm long are cut off. The upward growth of the shoot stops, but the active formation of lateral shoots occurs. Until August, up to 4-6 shoots can be formed on one shoot. In this state, the raspberries will overwinter. Important! If you delay the first pruning, the shoots will not have time to reach the required length and mature normally by the fall. Consequently, the risk of them freezing in winter will increase.
2. The second pruning is carried out in the spring of next year, after the leaves bloom. All side shoots that were formed over the previous year are cut off by 10-15 cm. This will lead to the activation of dormant buds located on the trunk. New branches will begin to develop from them. Such bushes bear fruit until September inclusive and are characterized by high productivity.

Spring feeding of raspberries

When spring comes, it is recommended to fertilize raspberries. This issue is especially relevant in cases where the bushes are planted on poor soils. Or if the raspberries have never been fertilized before, for example, they were left over from the previous owners.

There are several options for fertilizing, any of which can be used on raspberries:

1. When the snow has just melted, nitrogen fertilizers are applied to the raspberries. For each square of soil, 10-15 g of urea or ammonium nitrate is consumed. Nitrogen fertilizers acidify the soil, so it is recommended to add 1 cup of sifted ash to each bush. It neutralizes soil acidity. Fertilizers are scattered in the raspberry field and incorporated into the soil by loosening.
2. You can also prepare a complex fertilizer. To do this, mix 2 parts of superphosphate with 1 part of ammonium nitrate and 1 part of potassium nitrate. 100 g of this mixture is diluted in 10 liters of water and used for irrigation.
3. You can also use organic fertilizer. To do this, 1 part of fresh mullein is diluted in 10 parts of water, after which the plants are watered. This feeding will ensure the growth of weak shoots. Fertilization with fresh mullein is carried out only in the spring. If you use mullein throughout the season, the shoots will grow rapidly and will not have time to ripen by winter.
4. Another option is organic feeding. Poultry droppings are diluted in water in a ratio of 1:20. You can use goat or rabbit droppings, diluting it with water in a ratio of 1:10. This mixture is poured over raspberries.
5. Good organic fertilizer can be obtained even if you do not have any living creatures. To do this, fill an empty barrel with freshly cut grass, and then fill it with water. Within 10-14 days, the grass is fermented and turns into a highly effective fertilizer. For irrigation, 1 liter of infusion is diluted in 10 liters of water. For 1 raspberry bush, 2 liters of diluted composition is enough.

Tillage

In the spring, special attention should be paid to soil cultivation in the raspberry field. The raspberry root system does not lie very deep, so the soil in the raspberry garden is usually not dug up. This avoids damage to the root system. It is advisable to mulch the soil under the bushes and between the rows.

Mulching the soil

Raspberries respond very well to the application of mulch, which can be used as rotted manure, rotted sawdust, straw, dry tree leaves, rotted grass, and compost.

Mulching solves the following problems:

1. The soil under the bushes remains moist. Raspberries react negatively to lack of moisture, which greatly affects its yield. If the soil under the bushes is dry, the berries will be small and the shoots will be weak.
2. Mulch is an additional fertilizer, as nutrients pass from it into the soil.
3. Weed growth is prevented.

Before mulching, it is advisable to loosen the soil and water it abundantly. You can add fertilizer to the irrigation water. This will achieve a double effect.

Limiting the growth of bushes

Raspberries grow very quickly on all sides.

To keep it in place, the following methods are used:

1. Sheets of galvanized iron or slate are dug in around the perimeter of the raspberry tree. They prevent the bushes from spreading throughout the entire area. It is enough to make the depth of the sheets about 30 cm.
2. Sometimes you need to separate the shoots from the main bush. For example, so that it does not become depleted or for transplanting shoots to another place. To do this, use a shovel to cut through the soil along the perimeter of the main bush at a distance of 25 cm from it. All roots going to the shoots will be cut. After this, the shoots can be replanted or simply removed.

Pest and disease control

Raspberry bushes often get sick and are attacked by pests. In order to reduce the number of pests as much as possible, as well as to rid the raspberry plant from diseases, a number of protective measures should be taken immediately after winter.

There are several specific requirements, subject to which the likelihood of damage to raspberry bushes by diseases and pests is significantly reduced:

1. All fallen leaves located under the bushes must be collected and burned. Disease spores remain on it, and wintering pests hide under the leaves. This foliage is not added to the compost heap.
2. All dry branches, diseased and twisted shoots should be cut out and burned. They are also overwintering sites for pests. For example, you can notice swellings (galls) on raspberry stems, which contain a very dangerous pest - gall midge. Such shoots are pruned to healthy tissue. Diseased branches are burned.

The main pests of raspberries are the stem fly, raspberry weevil, gall midge, raspberry beetle, spider mite, glass beetle, and raspberry aphid. Complex treatment of bushes allows you to significantly get rid of pests.

Raspberries are affected by the following diseases: powdery mildew, anthracnose, rust, gray rot, white spot. Typically, treatment against diseases is combined with treatment against pests.

To do this, spray the raspberries at the stage when the buds have not yet bloomed:

1. 200 ml of nitrafen diluted in 10 liters of water will get rid of the raspberry beetle and also eliminate most fungal diseases.
2. Bordeaux mixture has a detrimental effect on pathogens of fungal diseases, and also destroys most wintering pests. Use a 1% solution.

To combat gall midges, systemic insecticides are used. These are Hom, Fufanon, Karbofos, Ridomil.

Karbofos emulsion (0.1-0.2%) helps get rid of raspberry flies, raspberry beetles, weevils, and aphids. When copper oxychloride is added to the emulsion at a concentration of 0.3%, the composition treats spotting.

The drug Actellik will help you resist weevils, aphids, mites and other sucking pests. 2 ml of the drug is diluted in 2 liters of water, after which the shoots and trunk circles are sprayed with it. Please note that Actellik cannot be combined with Bordeaux mixture.

Biological products can completely replace insecticides and fungicides. The following biological products are used for raspberries: Guapsin, Trichodermin, Fitosporin-M, Prestop, Polyversum WP. Their value lies in the fact that they are absolutely safe. However, they cannot be combined with chemicals.

In order for raspberry harvests to be regular and the bushes to have sufficient growth vigor, it is recommended to adhere to the following tips:

1. It is advisable to grow raspberries in one place for no more than 5 years. During this time, not only does the soil in the raspberry field become depleted, but also a huge number of pathogens accumulate in it.
2. Do not allow water to stagnate near the bushes. Raspberries can't stand this. If the water stands for several days, the bushes may simply die.
3. It is better to plant raspberries after currants, gooseberries and legumes. Do not plant raspberries after peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, potatoes, and eggplants.

By properly organizing the care of your raspberry tree, you can annually obtain an excellent harvest of these tasty and healthy berries.

There is no arguing about the benefits of raspberries, but not every gardener can get a high yield of aromatic berries. And the reason is a lack of nutrients in the soil, which are necessary for the berry to set and ripen. Therefore, it is important to fertilize raspberries in a timely manner, taking into account the plant’s needs for microelements.

Raspberry feeding is carried out in several stages, starting in April. Since raspberries take a large amount of microelements from the soil during the fruiting season, they need to be replenished. The entire raspberry tree needs to be fertilized, including young shoots and mature bushes. So, the first feeding is carried out in April, the second - in July, the third - before wintering.

Before applying fertilizer, garden raspberry plantings need to be loosened. After winter, the soil becomes compacted, so it is loosened to a depth of 10 cm. Now you can feed the raspberries with nitrogen fertilizers. Per square meter of plantings use 10 grams of ammonium nitrate or urea. At a distance of 30 cm from the raspberry bush, make a furrow into which a nutrient solution is added or dry fertilizer is sprinkled. You cannot make furrows closer, otherwise the root system will get burned. Raspberries need nitrogen to grow green mass and form healthy shoots that will bear fruit next year.

In April, many gardeners feed their raspberries with organic fertilizers (manure). Per meter of plantings, 5 kg of organic matter is used - rotted manure, compost. When feeding raspberries with bird droppings, care should be taken not to burn the root system with a highly concentrated solution. For 1 part of litter take 2-3 parts of water. If the nutrient is prepared from mullein, it is diluted with 5 parts of water.

Raspberries: what to feed?

By the appearance of raspberries, you can determine the lack of a certain type of microelements in the soil.

Nitrogen

With a lack of this microelement, leaf growth stops and they turn yellow. When in excess, the raspberry tree grows large dark green foliage. Excessive fertilizing with nitrogen is fraught with premature shedding of most of the crop before it ripens.

Potassium

Excessive potassium content in the soil leads to browning of raspberry leaves, the edges of which seem to be burned. In this case, the plant does not tolerate wintering well and produces a small harvest next year.

Magnesium

With a lack of magnesium, raspberry leaves begin to turn yellow in the direction from the center of the leaf to the edges.

Iron

If the raspberry bush has turned yellow, but the veins on the leaves remain green, it’s time to feed the raspberry bush with iron.

Caring for raspberries in the spring is the key to a good harvest and healthy plantings. The article discusses the main stages of caring for raspberries in April and May. Many novice gardeners think that raspberries do not need special attention, but this is not true. To get a good harvest you have to work hard.

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It is not correct to think that raspberries grow on their own. By itself, it grows only in the forest, where raspberries quickly turn into dense thorny thickets. The high content of nutrients turns raspberries into a real pharmacy. It has been established that it contains more vitamin C than berries.

How to care for raspberries in spring to get a good harvest

In order to enjoy delicious raspberries in the summer, in the spring it is important not to be late with fertilizing, pruning and pest control

Raspberry plants require heat and often do not tolerate severe frosts. If there is insufficient snow cover, the aboveground part of the plants often freezes, especially if the bushes grow in an elevated place. It is important to plant raspberries in lighted areas, protected from cold winds and with sufficient snow cover.

In early spring, experienced gardeners check the condition of overwintered raspberries. Immediately after the snow melts, it is necessary to inspect the plantings. Check how the raspberry bushes overwintered and whether there is any frost damage. If you didn’t have time to cut out fruit-bearing shoots in the fall, be sure to do it in the spring.

How to peel raspberries in spring

Raspberries were not cut from the plot in the fall. Raspberries grow a lot and require care. It will be difficult to cope with such an area in the spring.

Cutting out last year's shoots is an important preventative measure. It is better to peel raspberries from fruit-bearing shoots in the fall, but often there is not enough time for this or cold weather sets in unexpectedly. In early spring, shoots remaining from last year's fall are cut down to the ground, old leaves are removed (they may be affected by diseases) and burned.

Immediately after the snow melts, raspberry shoots bent for the winter should be untied and straightened.

The shoots bent for the winter are untied and tied to the trellis. If the raspberry shoots were bent and tied for the winter, then in early spring the branches must be untied and straightened. This work of caring for raspberries should be done immediately after the snow melts. Buds that are closer to the ground may bloom prematurely. If the cold returns, which often happens in the spring, the swollen buds may suffer and freeze.

Plants with exposed root systems are covered with soil. The soil around the bushes is mulched, that is, covered with humus, compost or peat at the rate of 4-5 kg ​​per bush. After lifting the bushes and cutting out old, broken shoots that bear fruit that year, the raspberries are tied to the trellises. Typically, trellises are made in one or two rows of thin stakes, wire, and twine. The trellises are secured to stakes driven into the ground.

• Cut out old shoots at the root
• Clear the plantings of fallen leaves and burn them
• Untie and straighten the branches, tie them to the trellis
• Cover exposed roots with soil and mulch with peat or compost.

Spring pruning of shoot tips

The tops froze over the winter. They must be cut back to the first living bud.

In the spring, the tops of raspberry branches are cut off. This should not be done immediately after tying to the trellises, but wait a little until the buds open. When the topmost bud opens, it will be clear whether the top of the shoot has frozen over the winter or not. Trim the top to the first blossoming bud. It is advisable to trim the tops in any case, since spring pruning stimulates the formation of fruit-bearing side shoots.

Trim the tops to the first living bud.

Caring for raspberries in early spring before buds open

Particular attention should be paid to the condition of the soil in the raspberry field. Throughout the season, the soil under the bushes should be weed-free and loose. If you miss the moment and do not cultivate the soil, the raspberry tree will quickly become overgrown with weeds, and old leaves that are not removed will serve as a source of all kinds of fungal diseases. In addition, some pests overwinter under old leaves and underground and will happily reproduce.

Soil maintenance around raspberries and early spring loosening

Do not dig up the soil near raspberry plants. Raspberry roots are not deep, and digging in the spring can damage the root system. Digging is done only between the rows in the fall. In early spring, the soil is loosened to a depth of 5-10 cm. Raspberries love loose, nutritious, moist soil. In the forest, wild raspberries grow under a thick layer of old rotted leaves. After loosening the soil around the plants, mulch.

Mulching the soil in a raspberry garden

Mulching raspberries ensures moisture retention and the presence of organic material in the soil. As mulch, you can use rotted sawdust, tops of root crops, such as beets or carrots, peat, compost, and humus. Then the soil around the plants is mulched. means covering the soil with some kind of material; in the case of raspberries, this is organic material: straw manure, rotted sawdust, peat, compost.

Under mulch, the soil becomes more fertile, loose, and retains more moisture. Under mulch, earthworms reproduce well, converting organic matter into humus. Mulch suppresses the growth of weeds, increases soil fertility, and improves temperature and air conditions. If the soil is very wet and dense, then mulching is not recommended. It’s better to just loosen it in spring and apply fertilizer.

Fertilizing raspberries in spring

For the first two years after planting, with good pre-planting preparation, fertilizers may not be applied.
Raspberries are very responsive to care, including the application of fertilizers, both organic and mineral. In early spring, nitrogen fertilizers are applied during loosening.

It is best to add urea. Urea is applied along the entire row of plants in a strip of 50-70 cm. Urea should be applied annually in early spring. Then mulch the soil. The rate of application of nitrogen fertilizers per 1 square meter.

• Urea 8 gr.
• Ammonium nitrate 10-12 g.
• During the period of berry ripening and fruiting, nitrogen fertilizers are not applied.
• In the fall, after harvesting, potassium and phosphorus fertilizers are applied.

Control of raspberry diseases and pests

With proper care of raspberries, you will get an excellent harvest of berries.

Raspberries, like other berry bushes, are susceptible to viral and fungal diseases and pest attacks. In early spring, before the buds open, raspberries and the soil under the bushes are sprayed with 3% Bordeaux mixture or 0.5-1% copper oxychloride solution. Borods mixture is used to combat raspberry pathogens and as a general sanitary measure.

During the season, plantings are periodically inspected to identify diseased plants and preventive measures are carried out. Early spring spraying of the soil under bushes and dormant buds with fungicides, including Bordeaux mixture, will destroy many pathogens. To prevent fungal and viral infections, raspberry plantings are sprayed 4 times per season:

• In early spring on dormant buds
• Before flowering
• Immediately after flowering
• After harvest

To combat insects and mites, raspberries are sprayed with insecticides depending on the specific situation, especially in the first half of summer. Timely spring work to care for raspberries increases the resistance of plants and creates unfavorable conditions for the development of diseases.

A short list of spring activities for caring for raspberries before the leaves bloom (April, May)

1. Inspection and untying of overwintered plantings
2. Cutting out last year's shoots at the root (if you didn't have time in the fall)
3. Tying raspberry shoots to trellises or in another way
4. Trimming the tops of shoots by 10-15 cm or to the first living bud
5. Early spring loosening of the soil under bushes
6. Application of nitrogen fertilizers and mulching
7. Spraying with fungicides (Bordeaux mixture) to prevent diseases.

Proper spring care of raspberries will allow you to avoid infection of plantings with various fungal and viral infections, reap a good harvest and ensure the growth of healthy shoots throughout the summer. In spring, you need to pay attention to other shrubs. Strawberries are often planted next to raspberries. Read the article on how to properly care for strawberries in spring.

The right start is the key to a good harvest. The secret of double pruning.

Cutting out fruit-bearing shoots is an important agrotechnical technique.

Everyone decides for themselves which variety of raspberries to plant in their summer cottage. Some people like traditional raspberries with small berries. Others prefer to grow large-fruited varieties. And others simply fell in love with her and cannot imagine their site without her. We recommend growing different berries, because caring for all varieties of raspberries is almost the same. If you want to please your loved ones with a bountiful harvest of aromatic medicinal berries, start by providing adequate nutrition to the planted plants.

Read also the article:

Raspberry nutrition

Plant nutrition can be artificial or natural. We need healthy, natural, good-tasting berries, so there is no point in considering artificial nutrition. When growing raspberries, we will place the main emphasis on natural active and passive nutrition.

• Active nutrition is the consumption by plants of the result of the vital activity of soil worms, microorganisms, and fungi. To provide nutrients in the required quantity, the summer resident must mulch the beds.
• Passive nutrition is good soil in which raspberries will be planted. Plants from black soil receive excellent passive nutrition. A summer resident simply needs to create and maintain a good microclimate in his garden beds. Providing natural nutrition to your raspberries will help you achieve high yields year after year.

Giving advice on caring for raspberries, experts note that worms, microorganisms, fungi and mulching will help increase the productivity of your favorite plant variety.

Let's start mulching, and nature will do the rest:

• Sowing raspberries in the beds will help make the soil loose.
• Planting of seedlings can be carried out in any direction. This approach will not affect the yield at all.
• Preparing a trench for raspberries. Its depth should be at least 40 cm.
• For one linear meter, 2 buckets and 1 liter are added.
• Planting seedlings according to the scheme.
• Pour 2 liters of water onto each bush.

The measures taken will help you get excellent growth in the first year. Before May 10, apply the first fertilizing, and then after 2 weeks the second and at the same interval the third. In remontant raspberries, the old shoot is cut off as soon as the young shoots grow at least 40 cm. There will be no fruits in the year of planting, but the harvest of subsequent years will surprise you.

Planting raspberry seedlings

We prepare fertilizer for raspberries from kitchen waste, collecting it in a barrel or composter heap for rotting. It is advisable to plant raspberries when there is ready-made compost and wood ash. We make markings on the previously prepared beds. The distance between the rows is at least 1.5 m, and the bushes are planted in increments of 0.7 m. We loosen the soil with a pitchfork, sprinkle with ash, add compost and mix. The seedling is planted in such a way that the first bud from the root is 3 cm below ground level. We mulch the ground around the root system.

There are no special secrets to caring for raspberries. It is enough to give a good start to the growth of a new bush in the first year, and then carry out simple treatments and apply natural fertilizers.

First year

At the beginning of May, we dilute 1 kg of fresh or granulated water in 10 liters of water and water the seedlings. After 14 days we repeat feeding. As soon as new branches appear, we buy the drug Baikal EM-1. Add 2.5 ml of the drug to 5 liters of water and make two treatments of raspberries every 14 days.

During fruiting

From the second year onwards, raspberries are fed with an infusion of manure and grass in the spring. Baikal EM-1 is used for two treatments per season. Fermented food waste is added every three weeks. In the fall, compost is added to the garden bed.

Spring period

Caring for raspberries in the spring consists not only of feeding the root system, but also of carrying out a set of measures:

• Two weeks before the berries ripen, we warm the soil around the bushes by covering the ground with roofing felt or black film.
• We prune large-fruited raspberries in the spring. We cut down to healthy wood.
• We leave no more than 8 shoots in each bush, cutting out thick and old stems.
• We tie raspberries to a trellis, which allows us to increase the yield by 2 times.
• We remove excess growth with a shovel.
• In dry, hot weather, we do this by adding microorganisms to the water.
• We treat the mulching material with biofluid.

Summer care

Periodically we go out into the garden to remove old branches, dig up shoots and remove weeds.

Important! Do not leave raspberries without watering with the addition of biological solution during the hot season.

In the first year after planting, remontant raspberries should not be allowed to bear fruit in order to reap a good harvest in subsequent years. We remove flowers and ovaries without regret. From the second year we will only remove old branches after harvesting.

We plant green manure between young plants, which will help keep the soil loose without mechanical tillage.

Autumn work

Caring for raspberries in the fall involves adding ash and herbal infusion. This will help increase yield, the number of replacement shoots and reduce the appearance of shoots.

Preparing the herbal infusion:

• We put the grass mowed on the site or removed from the beds into the barrel. One third of the container should remain empty.
• Add additional ingredients: school crayons - 2 pcs., jam - 1.5 cups, sifted ash - 1.5 cups, a handful of mullein.
• Fill the container with warm water with the addition of a biological solution and mix the contents of the barrel well.

On hot summer days, it is enough to withstand the infusion for a week, and in the fall it will take 10 days. To water the plants, dilute the concentrate with water in a ratio of 1:20.

To prepare wood ash fertilizer for 2 cups of the substance, 10 liters of hot water and 24 hours for tincture are required. For one raspberry bush we use 3 liters of the mixture.

We bend regular raspberries to the ground in the fall, and trim the remontant ones, leaving only up to 10 cm of the vine.

Now you know how to care for raspberries in spring, summer and autumn in order to get a good harvest for a long time in your summer cottage. Raspberries will bear fruit every year, surprising you with their large, sweet, aromatic berries. You will need to replant your favorite raspberry varieties to another bed no sooner than after 10 years.

Video about caring for raspberries