Q&A Master Gardeners

When should I prune raspberries to ensure a good harvest this year? Did I miss that timing? What other plants should be tended to in spring to ensure successful production this season?

Raspberries should be pruned in late winter or early spring (February - April).

We recommend leaving 4 - 6 canes per square foot at this time. For the ease of picking, a raspberry patch will be between 1 - 3 feet wide; if the patch is wider, consider cutting back or pulling out canes that widen the patch too much. When pruning out canes, cut them at the base. First, remove canes that have bulges in them-- these are usually caused by cane borers, and the internal damage causes the canes to collapse once they become heavy with fruit. Second, remove all canes that have pale, dried-out looking bark, as those have fruited and will not yield fruit again. Next, remove the thinnest canes. Ideally you will be left with 4-6 thick, sturdy canes. If those canes have little remnants of fruit on their tips, you may cut the tips back to encourage more branching.

Elderberry is another berry crop that can be pruned in the same time period. Cut out canes that are 3 years old and over. Inspect the bark on the remaining canes, removing areas with cankers (sunken, discolored lesions) and canes that have holes in them. When cutting back diseased canes such as these, look into the cross-section of the pruning cut. If you observe browning or uneven tissue in the pruning cut, continue cutting back until it is uniform.

Berry plants that should be pruned before their leaves emerge include: blueberry, currant and gooseberry, seaberry, and pawpaw.