Old raspberries

[MillieBee2]

Hi all. On my allotment I've inherited a patch of raspberries that don't look as though there's been any fruit on this year; they look pretty neglected and dog-eared and I have no idea how old they are.
I was wondering, if I cut the lot back to ground level now, will they be happy with this and come back refreshed next year? Or am I better off trying to grub them out and getting new?
The patch is a mess of canes and netting so they have to be cut back one way or another....

[Gillykat]

If they look pretty manky I would just cut them back to ground level then dig the roots out and dispose of them. I inherited a load of summer raspberries when I got my plot in 2015 and they were ok until last summer when the crop was rubbish....and this year's has been nae use nor ornament so I'm taking them out and will clear that area for something else.

I'm currently weeding and clearing the entire plot and starting again from scratch so will decide where to grow raspberries next and sort a couple of areas for summer and autumn varieties. At least if you start afresh with new named varieties you know what you're getting and the correct time to prune them. I have no idea what variety my summer ones are but I do have a couple of Joan J which are an autumn raspberry and they are GORGEOUS!!! Big fat juicy fruits the size of my thumb!

I'm still very much a novice at this fruit & veg growing malarky though so I'm sure somebody with more experience will be along with better advice

[Can the Man]

My rasberry canes were getting very tired despite me pruning them back every year, so last autumn I cut them back completely but left them in the ground, they threw up some great runners which I let develop then when they were 6” or larger I dug them up and potted them and kept then in the poly tunnel for a few weeks to develop into a sturdy plant. I have since planted them out , a total of 17 plants they are all thriving well some more so than others. Some are already 2’high, I then dug upthe old root system and got rid of it down the bog.

[MillieBee2]

Ok cool thanks guys. I'll cut them back first and leave it at that until I get rest of plot sorted, and see if there's any runners.

[Mark_Riga]

A lot depends if they are summer or autumn. If they are autumn, there should be fruit on them now. If not. then assume summer and if you cut them back now, you are unlikely to get much, if any fruit next year.
If summer, just cut out the old canes and leave some of the new ones so you can see what they are like next spring and whether to keep them or not.

[Kirk]

I would suggest cutting back and then removing.
You do not know what they are, or if Summer or Autumn - if you are concerned.

Myself I would remove them and replace with Autumn ones for ease.

Good chance that the ones you have are summer ones, most people seem to plant that form. So if you cut back and kept that is likely a fair assumption.

If summer and if the bed is a bit of a mess you likely cannot maintain the pruning regime as required. Summer ones need a more disciplined regime over Autumn ones.