The raspberry bush is an integral part of any summer residence. After all, a delicious berry can be enjoyed not only in the fresh summer, but also in the winter in the form of jams and preserves. But, despite the prevalence of the plant, amateur gardeners continue to wonder how to plant raspberries in the spring, how to care for a seedling, how to fertilize and so on.
A selection of raspberry seedlings
Raspberry - the plant is not very whimsical, but the place of planting, and the seedling itself matter. Shoots should be of medium thickness. The advantage is better to give a thin stalk. The root system should be well developed, fibrous, with white processes, with several matured surface stems.
When transporting a seedling, its open root system should be wrapped with a wet or damp cloth. Roots should not stay outdoors for a long time. Long-term maintenance of wet planting material in a plastic bag or bag is also undesirable. This affects the quality of the plant, spoils the roots, which begin to turn brown and rot.
Raspberry seedlings are cut off before planting, leaving no more than 35 centimeters.
Soil and location: preparation for planting
Raspberries can grow in general anywhere, but for abundant fruiting it needs light and sun. And since this plant is perennial, the location should be thought out. Placement in partial shade near the fence is considered favorable. It is advisable that the sun at the same time warms it more after dinner. Planting black raspberries along the fence is undesirable. This view prefers quiet places, protected from the wind, for example, somewhere in the corner of the garden.
When preparing the place, you should weed the area from perennial weeds. Planting seedlings should not be where potatoes or tomatoes have just grown. Good predecessors will be peas, beans, cucumbers, zucchini.
The roots of the plant are superficial, therefore, before planting raspberries in the spring, the earth should not be deeply loosened. However, drainage for the roots is required. For spring planting, the soil is prepared in the fall: digging, fertilizing. Raspberry prefers fertile, light loamy soils. Groundwater should not lie close. You can plant raspberries in sandy or sandy loamy soil. But every year such a place will require organic fertilizers and regular watering.
When to plant raspberries in spring: timing
The timing of planting raspberries varies. The optimal period is the second decade of March and the beginning of April. During this period, the plant still does not have time to wake up after the winter, the juices are still not moving, which means the planting and transplanting will survive more easily. Gardeners of the northern regions, where a wet and lingering spring, prefer this period. Before planting raspberries in the spring, you should familiarize yourself with the weather forecast and make sure that no freezing temperatures are expected in the next three weeks, especially at night.
In the middle lane, the time for planting raspberries does not matter much, the climate is favorable to any choice. For southern regions, where spring passes quickly and hot, dry days come, planting raspberry bushes in spring will not be the best option, since the young seedlings will quickly bloom buds, and new roots will not have time to grow. If there is insufficient moisture, the seedling will either take root for a long time or die.
Common Raspberry Planting Methods
Raspberries can be planted:
- in rows;
- bushes;
- in the tank.
The ordinary method is preferred by most gardeners. It, in turn, is divided into trench and pit. Trenches for landing are prepared three weeks before planting. How to plant raspberries in a trench way? The site is marked with stakes, a cord is pulled, a trench is dug with a depth of about forty centimeters, a width of half a meter. The desired direction for the trench is from the northeast to the southwest.
The bush method involves the location of the bushes from each other at a distance of one and a half meters. In four years, at least ten developed shoots will be at the raspberry bush.
Planting in containers is resorted to if the size of the garden is not impressive, but you want to plant a lot. The size of the container should be 50 x 50 centimeters. The bottom of the tank is cut off, and it digs into the pit. In this position, the shoots are not particularly growing, and free space can be safely used for planting another culture.
Planting raspberry seedlings
Before planting raspberries in the spring in the soil, ash must be added to it, which improves the taste of berries, rotted manure or compost. Do not forget about mineral fertilizers, for example, superphosphate. Nitrogen fertilizers should be avoided during planting. They worsen the rooting, development and wintering of the plant.
The place of future landing, whether it be a pit or a trench, must be abundantly watered. If before that it was raining well, then you should not water the holes, you just need to tamp the soil around the bush with good feet and sprinkle with mulch from sawdust and manure.
Before planting raspberries in the spring, the roots of the seedling should be dipped in a solution of mullein with clay. The roots should be well spread before planting in the ground so that they do not bend up.
The root neck, the place where the stem goes to the roots, after planting should be at ground level. Its strong deepening will lead to slow growth, if you leave the neck above the ground, then the root buds, from which new raspberry shoots are formed, will dry out.
Trellis
Planting and caring for raspberries require garter. For this, trellises are installed in raspberries. Their role can be performed by iron pipes, wooden or reinforced concrete columns with a height of at least two meters. In the case of long rows, additional posts should be installed in a row, every four meters. Between the pillars stretched four millimeter galvanized wire. It can be replaced with any other wire that does not bend under strong tension. The first row at a height of a meter from the ground is suitable for seedlings of the first year. In total, you will need to pull two or three rows of wire with an intermediate distance of sixty centimeters.
Raspberry seedling fertilizer
Raspberry top dressing is carried out not only every year, but also immediately after planting. After all, the root system, which has fallen into a new place, needs not only to grow, but also to provide the leaves with everything necessary. Organic fertilizers - 12 kilograms per 1 m², phosphorus - 20 grams per 1 m² or superphosphate - 100 grams per 1 m², potassium sulfate - 50 grams per 1 m² will contribute to the rooting of raspberries.
For further growth, the seedling needs nitrogen fertilizers, nitrate or a 5% solution of chicken manure, urea, phosphorus, superphosphate, potassium or potassium sulfate are suitable. Phosphoric and potassium fertilizers in the future can be applied every three years. In the spring, before the first loosening, nitrogen fertilizers are applied directly under the bush. Humus or compost is sprinkled in the spring after the first loosening. Organics in the form of mulch can be applied either in the fall or in the spring. Raspberry top dressing should be done every year, this will provide it with good growth and high yield.
Seedling care after planting
After-planting care of seedlings consists in sufficient watering. Watering is done from the expense: a bucket for three to four seedlings. After this, the hole around the bush is sprinkled with dry soil. Planting and caring for raspberries require mulch, which can be used both in row spacing and in rows. Gardeners use manure, straw, peat, peat, compost or sawdust as mulch . Mulching removes the need to cultivate the soil and helps retain moisture in it, prevents the soil from overheating during periods of summer heat, and promotes the development of a powerful root system. If you mulch only the rows, then the aisles should be dug in the fall.
For areas with a lack of precipitation, plastic film is used as mulch. It is spread out in a row, the edges are buried in the soil. The cuts on the film are made over each seedling, then it is slightly extended to make shoots.
The first raspberry wintering
For raspberries, the best protection against frost, strong winds and temperature extremes will be a snowdrift. In order for snow to cover the plant, it is bent to the ground in late September or early October, while the stems are flexible, at a distance of about thirty centimeters from the surface of the earth. The fallen snow will cover the stems, protect them from low temperatures, winds and sunlight. If there is little snow, then it should be collected from free sites and sprinkled with raspberries. In February-March, when the snow begins to melt, the stems that appear should be covered from the sun.
If the variety is frost-resistant, then it is not worth it to bend and cover it with snow, but it is necessary to tie it into a dense sheaf around the stake, which will prevent the effects of wind and tissue drying. Stems should be freed after snow melts.
Raspberry is a bush common in all regions of the country. After planting, only the first year will be difficult. But, observing simple rules, providing the necessary care and watering, soon you will be able to enjoy aromatic and juicy fruits. We hope that the information on how to plant raspberries correctly presented in the article will be useful to you. Have a good harvest!