The Latest Raspberry Cultivation Techniques and Methods Tutorial

Raspberry, also known as fupenzi, raspberry, wubiaozi, etc., is a woody plant of the genus Rubus in the Rosaceae family. Its fruit is an aggregate fruit, available in red, golden, and black. It is used as a fruit in Europe and America. It is widely distributed in China but little known, with only a small amount of cultivation in the Northeast region, and is relatively rare on the market. Now let us take a look at the cultivation techniques of raspberry!

Growth Habits of Raspberry

Raspberry prefers warm and humid conditions and requires well-lit diffused light. It is not strict about soil requirements and has strong adaptability, but it grows better in fertile soil with strong water and fertilizer retention and good drainage, from slightly acidic soil to neutral sandy loam, red soil, and purple soil. It bears fruit early and easily enters the full fruiting stage. Generally, it bears fruit two years after planting, reaches high yield at 3 years, and reaches the highest yield at 4 to 5 years, with the full fruiting stage lasting up to about 15 years. Its root system is shallow and it is not drought-tolerant. Insufficient water will inhibit growth and fruiting. The flowering period is from April to May, and the fruiting period is from June to July. If soil moisture evaporation is too high and water is insufficient, the yield during that period will be affected.

Propagation Methods of Raspberry

1. Root sucker propagation: When propagating raspberry by root suckers, the mother plant should be kept in moist, loose soil with sufficient nutrients. Select well-developed root suckers and maintain a spacing of 10 to 15 cm. Dig up the root suckers after autumn, digging deeply to retain more side branches. They can be planted immediately after digging, or first heeled in after digging and used to establish the plantation in early spring of the following year.

2. Cutting propagation: When propagating raspberry by cuttings, dig out lateral roots about 1 cm thick, select roots with buds, cut them into root segments about 10 cm long, and carry out cuttings in mid-March. Dig trenches 10 cm deep, insert the roots obliquely into the seedbed, leaving one quarter exposed above the soil, then cover level with soil.

3. Transplant propagation: For transplant propagation of raspberry, from November to March of the following year, dig up wild plants from mountain woodlands, cut off the aboveground basal shoots, keeping 20 cm in length, and be careful not to damage the dormant buds at the base. Then transplant them into a leveled field with a plant spacing of 25 cm and 2700 plants per mu. After planting, cover with soil and firm it, water to settle the roots, and cover with straw, dry grass, and so on.

Cultivation Techniques of Raspberry

1. Orchard establishment: Choose a wind-sheltered, sunny plot with loose soil, high organic matter content, and moist soil that is not prone to water accumulation to establish the orchard. Before establishment, plow deeply and level the land, and apply 2000 to 4000 kg of farmyard manure per mu. The planting method is the strip method, with a row spacing of 2 m and a plant spacing of 0.4 to 0.8 m. The planting hole size is 30×30×30 cm. When planting seedlings, be careful to protect the basal buds from damage. After planting, promptly cut back level, leaving stubble about 20 cm, and plant 2 to 3 plants per hole to achieve early high yield.

2. Land preparation: When planting raspberry, choose slightly acidic gentle slopes with deep, fertile, loose soil and good drainage, plow deeply and prepare the land, and transplant at a plant-row spacing of 50 cm×100 cm or 100 cm×100 cm. Before transplanting, apply sufficient base fertilizer, applying 3 to 5 kg of farmyard manure per plant.

3. Management: During the growth period of raspberry, combine loosening the soil and weeding, and apply topdressing 2 to 3 times each year, mainly nitrogen fertilizer, with an appropriate amount of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. Apply seedling fertilizer in March, flower fertilizer in April, and overwintering fertilizer in November, applying 1500 to 2000 kg of human excrement and urine per mu. Pay attention to watering during summer and autumn droughts. In May to June and August to September each year, carry out intertillage and weeding twice to reduce the consumption of nutrients and water by weeds, so as to promote the robust growth of the raspberry plant.

4. Bud removal: When new branches produce lateral branches in April to May, remove the terminal buds of raspberry to promote lateral branch growth. At the same time, pinch the lateral branches to encourage the development of secondary lateral branches. More branches mean more leaves, which increases the fruiting mother branches for the next year and increases yield. During the fruiting period, set up a support beside each plant to prevent lodging.

5. Trellising: Raspberry branches are soft and often droop to the ground, or are prone to lodging in wind, affecting yield and quality. Therefore, set up trellises in the orchard, tie the biennial branches to the trellis, so that the branches receive uniform light and maintain good air permeability in the orchard.

6. Fertilizer and water: Each autumn, apply 2000 to 3000 kg of farmyard manure per mu, and apply topdressing once each during flowering and fruit development to increase the fruit-setting rate and promote fruit enlargement. Topdressing should be mainly quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer, applying 10 to 15 kg of urea per mu each time. At the same time, apply 1 kg each of borax and zinc sulfate per mu to help preserve flowers and fruits. Do a good job of drainage and irrigation, water timely during drought to keep the soil moist. Drain accumulated water promptly after heavy rain to prevent flower and fruit drop.

7. Pruning: In spring, promptly cut off the dried and withered tips of biennial branches to encourage the remaining branches to produce strong fruiting branches. Thin out overly dense and diseased or pest-damaged branches at the base, leaving 7 to 8 biennial branches per plant, maintaining a reasonable density to facilitate ventilation and light penetration and ensure high and stable yield. After fruit harvest, cut off the biennial branches, and thin out branch suckers and overly dense basal shoots to control the total number of branches in the orchard.

8. Harvesting: The harvest time for raspberry is from mid-May to early June, when the fruit has fully developed and is green, not yet turning red and ripe. Harvest in batches. After harvesting, remove stems, leaves, receptacles, and other impurities, then pour into boiling water and blanch for 2 to 3 minutes before removing, then spread out to sun-dry or dry. The finished product is best when the grains are complete, firm, yellow-green in color, sour in taste, and free of stems, leaves, and debris.

Pest and Disease Control of Raspberry

1. Stem rot

[Damage] Stem rot is a serious disease that harms the basal shoots of raspberry plants. It generally occurs on new shoots, first appearing on the sunny side of the new shoot relatively close to the ground as a dark gray, scald-like lesion about 1.5 to 5.5 cm long and 0.6 to 1.2 cm wide. The lesion spreads rapidly in all directions, and the diseased area gradually turns brown. Many small black spots of varying sizes appear on the surface of the lesion, and the xylem turns brown and necrotic. As the diseased area expands, the leaves and petioles turn yellow and wither, and in severe cases the entire plant dies.

[Control] ① In autumn, clean the orchard, cut off diseased branches and burn them in a centralized manner to eliminate the pathogen. ② From May to August, spray for control. In mid-May and in July at the early stage of disease onset, spray susceptible varieties with 500 times dilution of thiophanate-methyl, or 500 times dilution of 40% fosetyl-aluminum, or 500 times dilution of thiram.

2. Powdery mildew

[Damage] Infected raspberry leaves are covered with a layer of white powder, which causes the leaves to become distorted or curled. Sometimes the leaves do not show white powder but instead show water-soaked spots. In severe cases, new shoot growth is stunted, and fruits are sometimes infected as well.

[Control] ① Before winter protection, clean the orchard, collect diseased leaves and branches and burn them in a centralized manner to eliminate the pathogen. ② Before germination in early spring, after flowering, and during the young fruit stage, spray 70% thiophanate-methyl wettable powder at 1000 times dilution, or 25% triadimefon wettable powder at 1000 to 1500 times dilution, or 50% sulfur suspension concentrate at 200 to 300 times dilution.

3. Willow ghost moth

[Damage] The willow ghost moth is a major pest harming raspberry and seriously affects the yield of raspberry in the second year. The larvae of the willow ghost moth mostly begin boring into new shoots in early July, generally at 40 to 60 cm above the ground, and mostly bore downward. The larvae often come out to gnaw on the phloem outside the bore hole, mostly girdling around the branch. The chewed wood fragments and feces are stuck together with silk, forming a ring around the branch that persists for a long time, making it easy to find and identify. Damaged branches break easily and dry up and die.

[Control] ① Before adult emergence in late August, cut off damaged branch tips. ② Raspberry orchards where plants are buried in soil for winter protection can reduce the occurrence of this pest. ③ In severely affected raspberry orchards, from late May to early June during the activity period of young larvae, spray the ground with 2.5% deltamethrin at 2000 to 3000 times dilution.

4. Raspberry crown borer

[Damage] The raspberry crown borer mainly harms red raspberry. In autumn, larvae make small cocoons and overwinter under the bark at the base of basal shoots. During the leaf expansion period, larvae crawl onto new shoots, bore into buds, eat out the interior of the buds, and then bore into raspberry new shoots, which are damaged and quickly die. Adults emerge during the flowering period, lay eggs in flowers in the evening, and the larvae initially feed on the berries, but soon move to the base of the plant to overwinter.

[Control] ① In autumn, clean the orchard and burn the cut fruiting mother branches in a centralized manner. ② During the leaf expansion period in early spring, spray 80% dichlorvos at 1000 times dilution, or 2.5% deltamethrin at 3000 times dilution to kill the larvae.

5. Raspberry beetle

[Damage] Adults of this pest usually begin feeding on tender leaves in spring and bite into flower buds, feeding on stamens and nectaries. Damaged flower buds fall off or become deformed fruits. Adults lay eggs inside flowers, and after 8 to 10 days the larvae hatch and immediately bore into the fruit to feed. Damaged berries lose weight and rot easily.

[Control] ① In severely affected raspberry orchards, apply pesticide to the ground in late April during the period when adults emerge from the soil, using 0.4 kg of 2.5% trichlorfon powder mixed with 25 kg of fine sand. ② In lightly affected raspberry orchards, manual control can be used. When adults begin damaging flowers, shake the fruiting branches so that the adults fall into a suitable container and are destroyed in a centralized manner. ③ Collect damaged fruits promptly, and collect and destroy larvae that have left the fruit.