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Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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Posted by keepitlow 6/7 (My Page) on Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 12:26
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I heard that mowing berries to the ground would give you one late crop. Whereas pruning them to a few feet givers you 2 crops next season.
My berries seem to be brittle and woody and on the dead side. No, not dead-dead, but above the ground dead. Why would mowing or pruning matter with such berries, where all that is above ground is toast anyway? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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Hi KeepItLow-
Around this time of year, the canes harden off and get brownish (with a tint of red). But, in the spring, that lower half of the cane will come back to life and produce berries if you don't mow it down. But, according to one book I read, those case (the early crop of a fall-bearer) produce only 10% of the total crop for the year.... So, some people just mow them down, and use summer-bearing varieties if they want an earlier crop. Now, if your canes are more grayish, then they're dead and it won't matter what you do. Make sense?
-Glenn |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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- Posted by ericwi Dane County WI (My Page) on
Thu, Nov 19, 09 at 13:44
| Our everbearing red raspberries get cut back to 10 inches every fall, and then they are heavily mulched with shredded maple leaves. The patch begins to green up in April, & by June it might be up to two feet. By the end of July, it is up to three feet, with many flowers. The first ripe fruit will appear in August, and fruiting continues through October. The patch is generally healthy and vigorous, so this particular variety seems to be well suited to our climate & soil. There are varieties of raspberry that only flower and fruit on canes that are two years old. Therefore, the treatment above is not always appropriate. |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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| Sometimes mowing works well for a single larger crop but with my neglected stand of persistant Heritage Raspberries, mowing gives weeds a better foothold and reduces the vigor of the raspberries. Where they get more water and better care, mowing works fine. |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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| H-man: maybe Heritage isn't a good choice for "mowing" to the ground. I've been cutting mine to the ground for 5 years. The bed has been meticulously cared for; nonetheless, they have been declining in sucker production for the last 2 - 3 years starting just about the time the bed was filled out. The bed has fewer and fewer canes shooting up from the ground each Spring. Maybe they don't like the KS summers. I'll leave the canes from this year cut down to 10" this year and next to see if they respond with more shoots. But then again they might just get dug up and replaced w/something else. I hope to get back to you this weekend on the CAR topic with some thoughtful responses. If the quail and pheasant hunting are good though, I may not. Michael |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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| Michael, I have a client with such a vigorous stand of Heritage that mowing doesn't phase them at all, but that is the only place I've seen it work well. Most of my clients want that earlier crop for foraging. I assume if they get plenty of water and are in well drained, high organic matter soil and mulched, they will respond just as well in other similar climates to mine. |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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- Posted by myk1 5 IL (My Page) on
Fri, Nov 20, 09 at 17:49
My early crop was better than my single crop. After I tried that I wished I had done it all along.
Mine declined but so did everything else I've tried in that spot. |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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| The early crop on my Heritage is better than my late crop. I don't prune anything until spring and then I cut off the dead ends in the spring when I can see the leaves to see what is still alive. This year my late crop got eaten by Japanese beetles and wasn't worth bothering with. |
RE: Mowing berries vs pruning back (Caroline, Heritage)
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| If your early crop is better than your late crop your season isn't right for the cultivar IMO. Stick with earlier bearers. |
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