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Black Rasberry Stems #872572

Asked June 11, 2024, 10:08 AM EDT

My black raspberry bushes have developed large green stems as opposed to the stems that have fruit. Do I need to cut these out or keep and will they produce berries next year?

Franklin County Ohio

Expert Response

Hello,
Raspberry bushes (both black and red) have primocanes and floricanes. The floricanes are second year stems that flower and produce fruit. The primocanes are first year growth that should be left to grow, as next year they will become the floricanes or fruit-bearing stems.

Depending on how manicured you would like your black raspberries to be, you can follow a strict pruning schedule as described in this article from Ohio State extension. The article contains complete information on selecting and growing different types of raspberries, so you’ll need to scroll down near the bottom to find the information on pruning.

To summarize, it’s recommended to prune black raspberries 3 times/year. In early spring (mid-March) lateral branches can be pruned back to 8-10”.  A second pruning can be done when the primocanes (the new green growth you are noticing) reach 24”. At this time you can prune off 2-3” of growth from the primocanes. The last pruning involves cutting back to the ground all of the floricanes that have produced fruit.

Following these pruning recommendations will make the fruit easier to get to at harvest time and keep the plants more manageable.

The article linked above has diagrams to help explain the pruning instructions.
This is great!  Thank you so much.

On Fri, Jun 14, 2024 at 4:44 PM Ask Extension <<personal data hidden>> wrote:
The Question Asker Replied June 14, 2024, 6:10 PM EDT
You’re welcome!

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