Width of raspberry beds

[Greenleaves]

Been over the allotment today to have a tinker with various bits and finally decided where the raspberries are going ( Glen Ample ). I have decided to create a long narrow bed but not sure of the minimum width, ideally I would like to keep it to 500mm.

Can anyone see any issues with this please?

[Alison]

I think it's more important how big the gap us between this bed and the next as they will spread and you may find it difficult to contain them.

[Greenleaves]

Thanks Alison, most of my paths are around 800mm and it will have one on each side. My main reason for the narrow requirement is that the position chosen will cast no shade on other beds.

[Mikey]

You can use them as a boundary edge Greenleaves this way you only have to use one path. They can make a pretty good wind break.
They send up suckers away from the main plant which will in a few years easily fill your width. After about 4-5 years it will be more about on going cutting out and thinning the spreading mass than anything else.
Which variety are you going for?
I prefer autumn fruiting as I get such a glut of strawberries in summer that I don't actually want the raspberries at the same time, well that and I prefer raspberry and blackberry pie.
The plus side of the autumn fruit is by planting in winter you get a crop in your first year while summer fruiting varieties won't.

[Bigmallly]

Make 2 T shape stakes the width of your bed, put them in the centre of the bed one at each end so there is about 2 ft above ground then fasten wires on each end of the T. This should hopefully give you some degree of control..............I've confused myself but at least I know what I mean...........

[Mikey]

Spot on BM, I understood every word.

You end up with a framework for the growing raspberries to be contained within, the flexible stems can be trained inside the horizontal wire. Far less unruly.

[Bigmallly]

Or tied to the wires if you wish.

[Greenleaves]

Get the drift BM, mini telegraph poles

[Bigmallly]

You've got it GL or simply put 4 stakes at each corner & use them.

[Thelma Sanders]

I have the path between the allotments on one side of my raspberry bed and one of my own paths on the other. They are both grass, so any suckers growing in the wrong place get regularly mowed off - no probs

[Aberdeenplotter]

you need a minimum of 5ft between rows of raspberries. There's an excellent book on fruit by Harry Baker,second hand copies available from Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-lis...condition=used
for as little as £0.01 +postage£2.80.It's my soft fruit bible

[Greenleaves]

Thanks AP

[Thelma Sanders]

you need a minimum of 5ft between rows of raspberries. There's an excellent book on fruit by Harry Baker,second hand copies available from Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/offer-lis...condition=used
for as little as £0.01 +postage£2.80.It's my soft fruit bible

Well, I've only got the 3ft grass paths and in 7 years I've had no problem with suckers beyond them.

[Snadger]

Make 2 T shape stakes the width of your bed, put them in the centre of the bed one at each end so there is about 2 ft above ground then fasten wires on each end of the T. This should hopefully give you some degree of control..............I've confused myself but at least I know what I mean...........

I use braced 4" square posts 5 foot high at each end of the row. I have a 2 foot tee on the top and an 18" cross piece mid way. Wires are stretched between top tees and bottom cross pieces.
Plant are planted in a single row and trained at an agle either side (inside) as they grow. this makes picking easy and keeps it all neat and tidy.
This year i am going to make another bed but this time I will concrete in the end posts for stability and heighten the top brace to six foot with two intermediate braces.

[Kristen]

second hand copies available from Amazon ... for as little as £0.01 +postage£2.80.It's my soft fruit bible

Worth also looking on Abe Books (not on this occasion though, sorry ) for secondhand books. Amazon seem to have fixed price of £2.80 for carriage, and the fact that books are sold for £0.01 suggests to me that the retailer can ship for less than that, and thus it contains some "profit", thus Abe sometimes have better deals. Anyways, it also offers "choice" so you might find a Very Good condition one cheaper on one, or the other.

0855331933 - Fruit by Baker, Harry - AbeBooks