Are these raspberries dead!!

[giggler]

Hi, this is my first post on here although i've been lurking for a while. This is my first year at growing veg, and i am known locally for killing plants off. I really want to prove people wrong!!! I'm having a really good go at growing a few things in pots, mainly potatos, onions, lettuce, peppers, chillis, strawberrys and some raspberrys.

Everythings going ok (I think) things seem to be growing well apart from my bloomin raspberry canes that still look like sticks. I bought them from an online company as bareroot longcanes that are supossed to fruit this year. When they arrived the roots were all covered in mould, but I planted them anyway about a month ago.

Should they not be showing SOME kind of life by now.....I'm Sooooo impatient!! I took photos of the mould to complain to the company if they dont grow, but that will look like a failure on my part!!! Father in laws freebie non-longcanes (dont know the technical term!) are growing and flowering well.

Should i be worried, start complaining already or just wait and see.

Thanks, sorry for the long winded post, I'm sure I'll be back for more advice!!

[rustylady]

Where did you buy them from? Raspberry canes are usually planted either September or March, not in June. If they had mould on them then complain to the supplier. Also, raspberries don't usually do well in pots.

[giggler]

Hi Rustylady, thanks for the quick reply!

They were tulameen longcanes, being sold still onsite advertised as plant this year for fruit this year (gardenbargains.com) this variety grows well in a large pot it seems. They were planted probably mid May. Should have been earlier I know but it took them over 6 weeks to despatch them.

They didn't look healthy when I planted them. Good job I took the photo of all the mould. Think I'll send a letter of complaint tommorrow, as I have had a few problems with them.

Thanks

[FB.]

Mouldy roots is not a good sign.

Raspberries should not be mail-ordered outside of Nov-March. The only way to offer bare root out of season is to keep them in an industrial refrigeration unit, but quality will decline with prolonged storage. Prolonged storage can also cause the plants to be many months late in coming to life after planting. They may still be alive, but having spent so long in cold storage, they need a long time to come out of dormancy.

Raspberries are very temperamental and transplant success rates are not high.

Any website with "bargain" in the title would make me wonder whether bargain price is the result of poor quality. But I have no experience of the company you mention.

[Two_Sheds]

Any website with "bargain" in the title would make me wonder ... poor quality.

That was my thought too.
You don't need to buy raspberry canes (unless you want a particular named variety). Just beg some cuttings on Freegle in the autumn (I used to give tons away when I had a raspberry forest)

[hamsterqueen]

I bought some from Dobies and they remained stick like, I e-mailed Dobies asking if this was normal (after some kind person on teh forum suggested it. They were very apologetic and said they had probably dried out in transit. They sent me six more last November (free) and the new ones are doing well.

I'd e-mail and describe the condition they are in and you may well get either a refund or new canes (preferably at the right time for planting) I think Garden Bargains guarantee their plants. I bought some fruit trees from them and they were guaranteed to fruit/flower

[Snadger]

You normally buy longcanes to fruit the same year. If they have no foliage on them now they will not have reserves to send up new shoots for next year, so are technically DEAD!
I planted longcanes but it was straight out of one area with as much soil as possible and planted and supported straight away in there new position.
Deffo contact the supplier and if you have photographs.......all the better.

[giggler]

Hi all, thanks for the replys.

I have now signed up to freegle, that was a new one to me, I'm on freecycle, but have never thought of asking for plants on there.

I have emailed the company, asking if this is normal, or are they dead and have attached photos, I'll let you know the outcome.

Thanks

[geebee]

I sent for the the free, bare root tulameen, raspberry canes from GYO earlier in the year and planted them into Morrison's flower buckets in Feb. They are growing wonderfully now, full of healthy leaves and loaded with fruit waiting to ripen. I am extremely pleased with them as I'd heard that you couldn't grow them very well in buckets. Not so in my case!

[Snadger]

I sent for the the free, bare root tulameen, raspberry canes from GYO earlier in the year and planted them into Morrison's flower buckets in Feb. They are growing wonderfully now, full of healthy leaves and loaded with fruit waiting to ripen. I am extremely pleased with them as I'd heard that you couldn't grow them very well in buckets. Not so in my case!

I have had raspberry canes in a container for the last three years and always get a decent crop!

[giggler]

So, I've had an email back from the company today saying, please watch for the next 2/3 weeks and if nothing is happening they will replace. I presume its gonna be WELL too late for anything to grow on them for this year, but then does it cause problems for next year, will they have time to do what they do before winter.

[dirty hands]

sorry for bringing an old thread back to life but i would be interested to find out if your canes ended up showing any signs of life. I came across this thread from google as i too bought 10 canes from the same company which i received last week (didn't realise they shouldn't be planted now). I am a complete beginner and to me they look like dead twigs :/

[SarzWix]

Hi dirty hands

As the original poster was told by the company to wait for 2 - 3 weeks before concluding the plants were dead, I would suggest sitting on your hands for another week or two and see what happens. You probably won't get a crop off them this year, even autumn fruiting ones, but hopefully they'll grow some foliage and build up a bit for next year... Fingers crossed for you

[dirty hands]

thank you for your reply. I'm getting stressed a bit prematurely as this is my first year of trying to grow my own. had a few things fail and a few things thrive (in pots, as my garden needs sorting out before i do a veggie patch) got a bit heavy handed on the add to basket button and spent over £100! Glad i have found this forum to help give advice, at least now i will know when things should be planted

Thanks again

[SarzWix]

I think everyone gets a tad carried away on the seed and plant orders...

If they don't pull through, you could have a look at J.Parker's website. Their raspberry canes are very reasonably priced, and have done well for me. They're cheaper as they are less 'fashionable' varieties, rather than due to poor quality