How to properly trim raspberries in the fall: terms and rules for pruning regular and remontant for the winter (at what height)

It is common to prune regular and remontant raspberries in the fall. It would seem, at first glance, a simple and understandable procedure, but it also has a number of subtleties.

About why, when and what needs to be done so that the removal of excess shoots does not harm the plant, but, on the contrary, makes it possible to survive the winter without problems, significantly increase the coming harvest and improve the quality of the fruits, is said in our article.

Why cut raspberries and is it necessary to do it in the fall (for the winter)

The goals of pruning any raspberry, including autumn, are:

• thinning plantings so that the bushes are better ventilated and
  get more sunlight;
• increased productivity (fruiting);
• prevention of wintering of harmful insects and fungal diseases in the shoots;
• improving winter hardiness;
• giving the bushes a neat appearance (additional aesthetic function).

Advice! If over time raspberries are too big then it should be mandatory plant and transplant... How to do it correctly, read here.

When to trim raspberries in the fall: the optimal timing for the procedure

It is not worth pulling with the autumn pruning of ordinary raspberries, on the contrary, you need to cut out the two-year-old shoots that have borne fruit as early as possible, as well as, without fail, weak and painful annuals. This is due to the fact that in the fall, the activity of various pests intensifies for the last time, and raspberries are the crop that is quite susceptible to diseases. Therefore, the faster you prune regular raspberries, the better.

Specific timing for pruning regular raspberries in the fall, of course, it is quite difficult to name, but the main signal to start the procedure is the end of its fruiting. Therefore, if the raspberries bear fruit already in August, then it is worth cutting the bushes already this summer month.

Concerning timing of pruning remontant raspberries, then it makes no sense to prune it immediately after summer fruiting, because it bears fruit again in the fall, that is, its pruning should be carried out exclusively in the autumn period, and preferably after leaf fall (since the bush distills nutrition from the leaves to the root).

In any case, you need to have time to trim raspberries for the winter. 3-4 weeks before the onset of subzero temperatures (although some gardeners believe that remontant, on the contrary, needs to be cut off after the first frost). Thus, the approximate timing of pruning raspberries in the fall in the Middle Lane (Moscow region) is the second half of August-September, in the Urals and Siberia - August, but in the South of Russia (Krasnodar Territory) - from July to November.

Attention! It is believed that it is best to cut raspberries in the fall, and not in the spring, because pests and spores of harmful fungi winter in the stems. However, it is also allowed spring pruning, since in early spring the condition of overwintered raspberries is clearly visible, which is exactly what is needed for sanitary pruning.

How to prune raspberries in the fall: rules and guidelines

Like all berries, raspberries have their own characteristics and, accordingly, their own pruning rules.

Basic rules for autumn pruning of raspberries (after fruiting) for the winter:

• You need to trim two-year-old shoots that have fruited, and dry, weak and painful annuals.
• It is easy to identify two-year-old shoots that have fruited by the color of their bark - she must be dark brown, in annuals - light brown, sometimes even greenish.
• Prune raspberries after fruiting in the fall, preferably practically flush with the ground (i.e. no stumps, maximum 5 cm), so as not to give the slightest chance to all kinds of diseases and pests to stay for the winter. If you leave high hemp (20-30 centimeters each), then insect pests can easily settle in them.
• Typically old and dry biennial shoots can be easily break it out with your hands and without the help of a pruner, but it's better to use it anyway.
• As the raspberry bush is prickly enough, so as not to wear gloves, you can use, for example, delimber on long handles.
• If raspberry bushes are affected by raspberry-stemgalitsa, then in order to save annual shoots they should be cut below the thickening (nests where the larvae sit), leaving a stump of at least 40-60 centimeters (although some summer residents are insured and cut it out completely, that is, at the very base).
• If on several stems of the same bush you notice brown or black spots (purple spotting), then you need to get rid of such a bush completely (not just cut off, but uproot it). If there are spots on one or two stems, then they just need to be cut off at the root.

Important! If during the season raspberries were constantly affected by various diseases and pests, then in the spring you need to do it without fail treatment (spraying) with fungicides and insecticides.

• All you need leave 5-6 of the healthiest and strongest annual shoots on every raspberry bush or up to 10 per 1 meter, when landing in a row.
• In good annual shoots of ordinary raspberries, after the end of fruiting, you can trim off the topsby shortening them by 20-30 centimeters. This growth will still not fully ripen and will delay the ripening of the entire shoot. If you delete it, then this positively affect the wintering of raspberries and future fruiting... But you can do a little more difficult, but more "profitable" (see the next paragraph "Double pruning").
• All cut off shoots at the end of the procedure should be collected together and burn.

Video: pruning raspberries in the fall - what to trim

Double cropping

Attention! Double pruning is carried out just for regular raspberries, in the remontant, annual growths are not affected, since at the ends of their shoots a crop is also laid.

If your raspberry bushes have a lot of tall, but unbranched annual stems, then you should also get rid of them, as they will still not give a good harvest. As a rule, in this case, perform double cropping according to Sobolev.

First time in early summer (late May-June)when shoots are reached 70-90 centimeters, the crown is cut by 10-15 centimeters. Thanks to such pruning, additional shoots are formed from the axils of the leaves of the raspberry, in other words, the stem will begin to branch, which means that more flower buds will be laid in the fall, and, therefore, the bush will bear fruit more abundantly.

Second time you need to cut the tops by 5-15 centimeters either already in the fall, or early spring (optimal), thus the new side shoots will also begin to branch out and produce even more berries.

Video: double pruning raspberries to increase raspberry yields

Advice!If you plan to carry out double pruning to increase the yield, then plant raspberries from each other in this case should be at a greater distance, since the bushes will thicken thoroughly.

Do I need to cut remontant raspberries for the winter

Repaired raspberries differ from the usual ones in their great fertility - you can harvest 2 crops from a bush in 1 season (in summer and autumn).

However, it is worth knowing that her (remontant) second harvest (autumn) is less tasty, while the first (summer) harvest is not inferior to the usual one.

Nevertheless, it makes sense to have both ordinary and remontant varieties on the site in order to eat tasty and healthy berries both in summer and in autumn.

Repaired raspberries bear fruit both on annual and two-year shoots, therefore in autumn you can cut off all shoots at the root. In this case, you will receive more plentiful autumn harvest.

Pruning remontant raspberries at the root should be carried out in late autumn, when the leaves turn yellow and fall off.

If you want to more uniform fruiting (but less abundant) in 2 stages (Once in summer and again in autumn), then annual shoots should be left.

However, in the conditions, for example, of the Middle belt (Moscow region), it is better to cut off remontant raspberries completely for the winter (to get 1 good harvest in August-September), but in the South of Russia and in regions with a longer warm period, annual shoots can be and even better leave.

In general, remontant raspberries can be cut in spring.

Video: repair and regular raspberries - differences in care, including pruning

Thus, the autumn care of remontant raspberries is much easier, since, as a rule, they are cut off completely for the winter, which means that annual shoots do not need to be bent, tied up and covered for the winter (although mulching with rotted manure is a great idea, because mulch will be also an excellent top dressing in early spring).

By the way! About, what else to do with raspberries (remontant and regular) in autumn and how to properly prepare it for winter, readin this article.

Novice gardeners also often ask themselves: Do you need to prune remontant raspberries in the first year after planting? If you planted it a month before the onset of frost, then it is quite possible to leave a stump 15-25 centimeters high.

Interesting! Some gardeners say they have semi-renovated raspberry... However, this term is incorrect. In fact, it means that the variety is actually, that neither is remontant, but late, which means that in the Central zone (Moscow region), especially in the Urals and Siberia, it simply does not have time to return the harvest.

Video: how to trim remontant raspberries

Garter young shoots for the winter and other procedures for preparing raspberries for winter

There are 2 ways of garters for wintering young raspberry shoots:

• vertical garter for trellises;
• arched garter or bending to the ground.

By the way! About, how to tie raspberries correctly in autumn and spring, you can read in this article.

Experienced gardeners it is not recommended to tie up raspberries vertically for the winter, because in the event of severe frosts, even the most winter-hardy varieties of the berry can freeze and no longer give a good harvest next year.

Note! More details about other activities to prepare raspberries for winter you can readhere.

So, pruning in autumn, which is very important for raspberries, has its own nuances. By trying to comply with them, you will undoubtedly achieve an increase not only in the yield, but also in the quality of the berries.

Video: pruning raspberries for the winter and other rules for caring for raspberries in the fall