AF STAFF |NISKU
Add this to the list of things which mark the province’s north-south divide – northern Albertans are the floricane raspberry type while those in the south fall into the primocane category.
That was one of the lessons delivered by raspberry grower Lloyd Hausher of L &A Enterprises at the recent Alberta Farm Fresh Producers Association conference.
“I don’t really recommend putting in floricane raspberries if you’re in Calgary, Lethbridge, Brooks, Medicine Hat areas,” said Hausher. “In normal years, we would get one or two chinooks and during that warm period, the plants would come back to life and when it gets cold again, they’ll freeze.”
Read Also
New crop insurer policy enables easier startup for faba beans
Agriculture Financial Services Corporation updated its normals for faba beans, which may open the door for more Canadian producers to feel comfortable growing the pulse crop in the future.
Floricane raspberries are more common and are what most people think of when they think of a raspberry bush. A floricane raspberry cane grows vegetatively the first year and then goes to sleep over the winter, said Hausher. The following year the cane will bear fruit, and then die that fall. Floricane raspberries are summer bearers.
“Even though that cane dies after two years, it will be replaced by other canes, so your patch will always be there,” said Hausher.
Dead canes need to be cleaned out each year to allow the new canes to grow and Hausher only recommends growing them north of Olds so they’re not subjected to chinooks.
Primocane raspberries, sometimes referred to as fall bearers, have only been in Alberta since the 1980s. They love a long, warm season and most of their production occurs in the late summer or fall. Primocane varieties produce fruit on the current season’s growth and production generally begins in mid-to late August. All the canes are cut to the ground in March or April each year.
Both varieties need shelter and should never be planted south of an east-west shelter-belt because plant growth will be compromised. The plot for the raspberries should be well established a year prior to planting, and all weeds should be removed from the field.
Trimming
Canes should be trimmed if they are over six to eight inches tall when planted.
“If you don’t trim, the vegetative canes will fruit and you will get about half a cup of fruit off each of these canes,” Hausher said. “If the plant thinks it can propagate itself by producing a few fruits, it will then reduce the amount of suckers that will fill in the row and you will not fill in the row as fast as you could.”
From bloom to harvest, raspberries take up an increasing amount of water, especially as they turn colour from white to pink to red.
“When they start to go from white to pink, that’s when you have to make sure you have adequate moisture in the soil and look at consistently or continually watering them. This will give you the extra yield,” said Hausher.
During this time, raspberries need from one-half to almost one centimetre of water a day. From blossom to harvest they need about 2.5 to almost four centimetres (an inch to 1-1/2 inches) per week.
Raspberries require about 40 to 80 pounds per acre of nitrogen to grow. Half should be applied when the snow melts in the spring, and the other half in early to mid-May. The fertilizer should be applied directly on the plants and not broadcast.
Primocane plants can be mowed each year so they don’t need to be pruned while floricanes only need to have their dead canes trimmed out.
If your local climate is suitable, you can bridge the north-south raspberry divide and grow both.
“If you grow both kinds, the floricane will be finishing about the time that the primocane are starting,” said Hausher.
Some of the taller varieties may need to be put on a trellis because of heavy fruit, but this is not necessary for all varieties.
