How big does it need to be?

[Bal]

I am planing a fruit cage for next year and have no idea how big it needs to be. I want to grow raspberries, gooseberries, strawberries, Chilean guava berries and blue berries. The problem is I don't know how many of each variety to grow to give a big enough crop to allow for preserving. Also I would like to make a raised bed filled with ericacious soil for the blueberries. I have three at the moment.
I realise this is a very vague question, but at the moment I don't know if I need a 6 foot by 9 foot cage or a 6 metre by 9 metre cage.
Thanks in advance

[Nicos]

Personally I'd go for as large as you can spare!
You can always grow other things in it

Do make sure you can walk around in it without stooping, otherwise your poor back will suffer!

[bearded bloke]

Mine is 4 metres long x 3 wide x 2 high, covered with debris netting, one side has 2x red currant + 2x black currant, the other has 2 rows of 6 raspberries, the end without the door has 2x gooseberry + 1x blueberry, and is probably best described as overcrowded

[veggiechicken]

If you're growing spiky gooseberries in there, make sure there's enough room to get around them without being spiked.
Most Raspberries need a lot of headroom and will spread like wildfire if you give them a chance.
Strawberries may get trampled underfoot if you don't have much space between plants.
Really, I'm saying, make it big!!

[Bill HH]

I agree with all the above including using debris netting because that will exclude carrot fly and cabbage whites. Making it bigger need not cost much more and gives you greater options. i also think debris netting excludes a lot of slugs and snails although some come from the soil.

[Dorothy rouse]

Definitely as big as possible

[Dorothy rouse]

Actually, if you have room a separate bed for your strawberries might make it easier, you can easily make a netting cover for them. You want to make harvesting these easy

[BUFFS]

Actually, if you have room a separate bed for your strawberries might make it easier, you can easily make a netting cover for them. You want to make harvesting these easy

and make it squirrel proof as they LOVE strawberries..

[Bal]

Thanks everyone. I just have to negotiate how much of OH's wildlife meadow I can steal

[Mark Lottie]

dont know if this is useful info but

we have a 2.25mx7m cage. Within it are:

-18 raspberry
-2 loganberry
-5 blueberry
-about 6 currants

I'd say we have more than enough for a family of 3. plenty of fruit throughout the summer

[Stan79]

We have:
4mx4mx2m cage
two rows of raspberries
one blackcurrant
one redcurrant
one gooseberry
one blueberry
one cranberry
plus space for half a dozen other random raspberries and blackberries in pots
strawberries in a bed outside with seperate netting

I dug a small trench around each row of raspberries and sunk plastic root membrane around each row then back filled with soil in a bid to stop the raspberries spreading. Too early to tell if it has worked but should work in principle!

There's a link to me "Fruit Cage Thread" in my signature just below this sentence!