Raspberries

Q. I bought some red and black raspberries Sat. (March 3). It is too early in Ohio to plant them so what should I do with them until it is time to plant..etc watering sun?

A. I believe that you are still under threat of frost and maybe snow. I know when I moved from Michigan eons ago it was May 1st and the prior week was very snowy!

Therefore I do not want you to put them outside. If they feel warm spring weather then their buds will break and will be susceptible to frost damage! Try to keep them dormant until your frost date. A cool dry dark garage or basement would work.

Check them weekly as to their dryness. If they appear to need water give them just a little and also mist them. Do not encourage growth until they are outside in their garden beds.

Q. Is there a trick to pruning raspberry bushes?  I have many everbearing raspberry bushes that need a good pruning.

A. It is very important to understand the terms used to describe various parts of a raspberry plant before attempting to prune raspberries. Raspberry canes are of two types primocanes and floricanes. Primocanes are first year canes while floricanes are second-year fruiting canes. Summer red raspberries should be pruned twice a year first in the spring and immediately after harvest.

The spring pruning in late March or early April consists of removing all weak canes and cutting back tall canes (over 5 feet) to 4.5 to 5 feet. The second pruning consists of the removal of canes that produced fruits right after harvest. Everbearing red raspberries such as "Heritage" raspberry can be pruned to produce fruit once a year or twice a year.

If you follow the pruning methods used for summer red raspberries "Heritage" raspberry will produce fruit once in spring and once in fall. However many home gardeners and commercial growers mow or cut all "Heritage" canes to the ground in early spring (March or April) for the sake of simplicity. "Heritage" raspberry pruned this way will produce only one crop starting in early August in southern Ohio and mid-August in central Ohio.  Black and purple raspberries are pruned three times a year: in the spring summer and after fruiting.

First pruning is done in spring when lateral branches are cut back to 8 to 10 inches in length in mid-March. Second pruning is called tipping or heading of new canes or primocanes. When grown without supports summer tipping is done when black raspberry canes reach 24 inches in height and when purple types reach 30 inches. Tipping is done by removing the top 2 to 3 inches of new shoots as they develop. Third pruning involves the removal of canes that produced fruits right after the harvest.