Pruning my Autumn Raspberries

Do your Autumn-fruiting Raspberry canes look like this? Then it’s time to prune them. There’s not a moment to lose.

I don’t want to create panic or anything but this really is the time to prune Raspberries if you want a nice big Autumn crop. If you leave it any longer then the plant will start to put more and more energy into the existing canes when what you actually want is the plant to put its energy into this year’s growth, which will subsequently fruit.

I know that you can leave Autumn Raspberries unpruned and they will crop on the existing canes, just a little earlier. But isn’t that what Summer Raspberries do? Besides, I love my Autumn Raspberries.

Gorgeous handfuls of plump Raspberries in late August, September and October, you can’t beat it. My little boy couldn’t eat them fast enough! I pruned at this time last year and got a bumper crop so I’m doing it again.

And don’t forget the plants wouldn’t mind a nice mulch at this time of year too, rotted manure, home-made compost or wood chippings will do. Happy pruning!

Category: Growing Fruit, Pruning     Tagged: ,

11 Comments on “Pruning my Autumn Raspberries”

  1. Aaaargh I’m at work and can’t get to the plot to check! Must run round with the torch tonight. Thanks for the photo because I now know how to tell when it’s time to prune.

  2. Gah! I pruned them in autumn – I though that was what I was supposed to do? Dear…

  3. I always prune in the fall after the leaves have turned. Once the leaves have turned all nutrients are back into the roots. Not that I think it makes any difference but this time of year is quite busy for me fall and early winter isn’t.

    I don’t know what your spring weather is like but if it is the damp, rainy, and cool weather we get in the Midwest U.S. then mulching now would be risking harboring disease. Brambles are susceptible to root rot, raspberries in particular are quite at risk.

  4. I swear by Feb pruning too and picked my final batch of autumn raspberries in the third week of November (still some new berries coming through but no sun to ripen them off)

  6. As far as mulching is concerned…. I read somewhere (?) (and tried it last year,) that putting wood ash onto soft fruit, particularly raspberries would be a great benefit and I had a bumper crop in the summer so i guess it would be good for the autumn varieties aswell. A great use of ash if anyone has log fire over the winter. I will try it again this year too.

  7. Thanks very much for the reminder. I didn’t know when to do mine (even though I have a pile of grow your own type books !!!!) I cut them down a bit in late autumn, but think I need to prune some more. How far down do you go ? have you got a photo of the pruned canes ?

    maureen

  8. Hey neat picture. No cellophane. I grew up on a Maine farm and after school and all summer working on the truck garden was the job. Learning about the public at nine years old selling vegetables. The lady in the Lincoln wanting the best 13 years of corn and ripping back each ear searching the entire 1000 ear pile even though we did not have worms and threw in an extra ear. And then the lady with the rusted Rambler who gave me a dollar tip and said any 13 will do just fine sweetie. Farming..dealing with the ups, downs, weather but being outdoors, self sufficient. Love it.

  9. Pruned mine today and feeling very smug about it. Although slightly less smug when I realised that I forgot to give them an ash feed last year …

  11. Having looked for advice on pruning autumn raspberries I seem to have missed the boat…or with the late spring am I too late to prune now? They do look like the picture..