Is there a better way to start the 2025 gardening season than with some mouth-watering berries you can grow so easily? We certainly think not, so why don’t you try growing our ‘Plant of the Month’ for this January, the classic short cane Raspberry ‘Autumn Bliss’.
A premium variety in every sense of the word, and one we simply never grow tired of growing! Just picture yourself serving sweet treats made from raspberries you’ve grown in your garden – it really is achievable!
‘Autumn Bliss’ is a tried and tested performer, so you can depend on it too! As a Primocane plant, fruits emerge on new season stems, saving a whole year of growing time, so you can get an extra year of sweet treats, even quicker. Plus, it has a long cropping period from August to October, as well as an excellent resistance to disease.
Compact in nature, these raspberries can even be grown in pots on the patio – pluck raspberries fresh from the plant and enjoy the sugary sweetness without even leaving your chair, is there anything more blissful?
Ready to Grow Your Own Raspberry ‘Autumn Bliss’?
- Plant raspberries roughly 50cm apart in rows, along walls or fences or in beds where further support from posts can be used.
- They can also be grown in large pots (40cm+ diameter) on your patio, balcony, terrace and more.
- Select an appropriate spot for your plants, making sure that you give them enough space to grow to their full size.
- For best results, plant in a sunny but sheltered position.
- Soak canes in water for a couple of hours before planting to wake them up from dormancy.
- Dig a hole with enough room for the roots to spread. If you’re planting multiple bushes, it’s easiest to dig a trench.
- Whether you’re planting bare-root or potted plants, keep the crown of the plant 1 or 2 inches above the ground – raspberries hate to be buried too deeply.
- Fork over the bottom to loosen the soil and add some good quality fertiliser such as Blood Fish & Bone.
- Holding the plant upright in position with one hand, slowly backfill the hole with soil, and gently shake the plant, so the soil falls back around the roots.
- Firm in and water well.
Aftercare Advice:
- A thick mulch will conserve moisture and suffocate weeds. Always keep a thick layer of mulch around the plants.
- Water daily from spring until after harvest. Regular watering is better than infrequent deep soaking.
- Remove any suckers (canes that grow well away from the rows) to prevent them taking valuable nutrients away from the main plant.
- Cut down any raspberry canes that have already fruited in November, leaving long canes for the following year’s bigger crops.
- Summer-fruiting varieties crop in July on last year’s growth.
Show off your beautiful raspberry plant by sending us a picture here!
