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Rasberries in containers

• Message 1. 

  Posted by dragonf1y (U7805835) on Wednesday, 19th May 2010

  I have never seen this suggested - but Homebase and others are selling canes and it has got me wondering. (a) how do you tell if you are buying a viable cane (they all seem dormant / dead to me) and (b) is it possible to grow them in a large container - approx 1 ft by 1ft deep?

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• Message 2

  , in reply to message 1.

  Posted by greeneddy (U6603838) on Thursday, 20th May 2010

  Rasberries have shallow roots which run horizontally along the soil. So if you can only grow them in a container, try to get one where their roots can spread sideways.
  
  In my experience you will get less fruit off them, and mine gave up the ghost after about three years. (But by then, luckily, I had managed to get an allotment).
  
  You can tell whether something is dead by scratching a tiny bit of bark with your fingernail; if underneath it is green, then there is some life left. If brown, then it is dead.
  
  If by just looking at them, you are unsure if they are alive, I would think it would be best to look elsewhere for your plants. By this time in the season, there should be plenty of healthy, leafy growth on raspberries.
  
  

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• Message 3

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  Posted by bookertoo (U3655866) on Thursday, 20th May 2010

  Sorry dragonfly, but 1' x 1' is not a large container. We have pots here several feet across and deep, most of which will never be moved again except by a JCB!! That's large and is probably the sort of size you need for respberries - as leat across, as they do not have deep roots. I do grow just about anything in pots, 400+ at last count but dare not count again as know I have added more!! You can do raspberries in a big container, but the reality is that they travel across a garden given room, and they are not really happy in pots, however well fed, watered and loved. This saddens me to say as I often preach the gospel of 'you can grow anything in a pot as long as you answer its every need, given that it cannot help itself'. However, raspberries are not one of my best success stories!! Strawberries, yes, blackurrants, any currants actually, blueberries, rhubarb, small fruit trees - try any of those but possibly give raspberries a miss. If you really must try (and I would after reading that!!), get a container at least 3 foot across, a half barrel might work, and ensure very good drainage, raspberries do not like getting their feet wet. Lots of crocking, loam based and peat free compost with good amount of vermiculite, plant a few canes as far apart as possible. Put a frame in or around the pot to support the canes as they grow - net against birds and squirrels or you will have no fruit for your trouble. Buy good quality named canes, getting a bit late but there should be some about still - good white/green wood under the bark when you gently scratch it, maybe a few leaves on them. Don't go away for more than a day or two if the weather gets warm, they will need watering at least daily, possibly twice a day if it does get really hot (please let it get really hot!!), whatever you do, have fun - I do, pots and all.

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• Message 4

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  Posted by Laurel (U2434248) on Thursday, 20th May 2010

  You certainly can grow rasps in pots and they don't have to be huge, just pick a variety that's not overly vigorous - a number of pick-you-own farms are now doing it.
  
  Pots do also have certain advantages in terms of weed and disease control.
  
  As has been pointed out, though, they will need plenty of water.

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  Posted by dragonf1y (U7805835) on Thursday, 20th May 2010

  Bookertoo - thanks for your really enthusiastic response! I think that by the time I have bought a container that big I might have to forgo all the other relatively smaller pots I cultivate and the price of the container will set me back any money saver. So I have a new plan! I will plant some at school in a corner where they can rampage away - but I cannot divulge where I work or else you will all be nicking them through the fence! Thanks too for the help in selecting plants - as always Homebase sounds a total rip off. I will let you know how I get along, Helen x

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• Message 6

  , in reply to message 5.

  Posted by bookertoo (U3655866) on Sunday, 23rd May 2010

  Actually you don't have to pay a fortune for big pots unless you want to have posh terracotta. Some machine made terracotta is quite cheap, and your best friend for big pots is a builders yard! They sell all sorts of interesting things which are never intended for plants but serve the purpose very well, and cost relatively little!! Big chimney lining pieces, concrete tubing for road developing drains, make a friend of you local builders merchant - you'd be surprised what you can find and how little it costs when it does not come from a garden centre!!

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