I've got floricane raspberries, and the canes for next year seem very small and underdeveloped compared to the ones I just harvested this years berries off of. Is it normal that they be so small at this point? Or should I have fertilized them better weeks ago, and is it too late now? This was my first harvesting year, so I'm not sure what's normal at this point.
Supposed to start feeding when it warms up. You can start feeding them with liquid nutrients asap and get some growth before summer ends. I would use something synthetic if you want quickest results, nonorganic liquid is also beneficial here bc you can be sure that it'll get in fast and get used up quickly so you can stop feeding towards the tail end of summer where I think you want to let it hunker down.
5-5-5 or 10-10-10 fert may be fine. You may have better luck with something geared towards tomatoes at this point, since you're looking to grow fruiting bodies? If you want to stay organic I'd stay away from fish emulsion tho, too much nitrogen, unless you mix it with other organic solubles
If you want to stay organic I'd stay away from fish emulsion tho, too much nitrogen, unless you mix it with other organic soluble
Everyone should avoid fish emulsion.
It has its uses, but shouldn't be used regularly. I guess if you wanna slowly acidify your soil that is one way to do it lol. Hydrolyzed is safer but like twice the cost, which is a factor for manyEdit: ah sorry maybe my ADHD kicked in, realized this is a vegan space. My bad
and the canes for next year seem very small and underdeveloped compared to the ones I just harvested this years berries off of. Is it normal that they be so small at this point?
ShowThis picture seems to suggest that the primocanes (this year's canes) are going to be smaller than the floricanes (canes that sprouted last year)
This would make sense since the primocanes have only been around for 6 months, while the floricanes for 18 monthsYou should be comparing the size of the new canes to the size of the canes last year, idk if you're doing that
Oh, ya I guess that makes sense! They've got the rest of this year to grow still, so I've got plenty of time for fertilizer and it to be used
so do you remember last year's canes being small as well? Or you just don't remember? If last year's canes were small too, then the theory is correct. If not, something else weird is going on
As Hello_Kitty_enjoyer mentioned, it's not abnormal for these canes to be smaller at this point. You don't mention where you are located but I am assuming you've got a long way to go in the growing season, at least 2-3 months.
I'm sharing some photos of my raspberry bushes at different times to demonstrate. The images are in reverse chronological order. Currently, I've got new shoots coming up everywhere. It's wild. It can take a few years for them to become established so don't worry too much the first year they are in the ground.
Some varieties fruit on the primocane too, but it sounds like you know that they don't. Do you happen to know the variety you have? This will help you better understand what to expect. New growth comes from different places on different varieties. I grow two varieties that behave very differently and it's a little confusing to see them side by side to be honest!
If they are in the ground they will need less feeding than in a pot. When in a pot they are in an artificial environment and can't source the nutrients they need. I don't really have to feed my raspberries at all, but I might throw some alfalfa meal (nitrogen, to support green growth) or compost (grab bag!) at the base in the spring.
You shouldn't fertilize too close to the end of the season because you will be encouraging growth that might not get time to get hearty to the cold and will be damaged.
Good luck and have fun!
Wow thanks for the pictures that really helps, yours look amazing, hopefully mine get full like that. I've got purple royal(ty?) variety, I think. I guess I got in my head about it a bit and I shouldn't have, y'all have been crazy helpful.
Gardening can do that! I have to remind myself to have fun and there is so much I can't control.
This discussion was super interesting, so I took some more photos today and made a new post kind of comparing the two varieties here
I can't actually help you, but can I ask some questions about your plant?
What year did you have the bush put in?
I put them in the ground last year, but I had them in a too-small pot before that, which they did not like. So this is the first real harvest, if that makes sense?
I put them in the ground last year, but I had them in a too-small pot before that
Depending on how long you had them in that pot, the plant could be dying from old age and that's why the canes are small. Raspberry plants live 5-15 years depending on variety.
But seems unlikely
Well I didn't think I had them in that pot for long, but I was thinking about it and they may have been there since 2019... Oh no my raspberry plants are getting old! I guess that's why they have all those canes. (I'm sorry)
just look up the variety and the avg lifespan. The lifespan varies heavily on type