Raspberry plants leaves shrivelling, going brown and dying...

[Russel Sprout]

Hi all

I had a problem with a couple of canes two months ago whereby the leaves were starting to yellow. The rest of the plants in the long row seemed unaffected, so I pulled the bad one up and didn't overly worry about it. I posted a thread at the time which is here:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...eas_93904.html

I thought it best to start a new thread today as the problem I'm now having might be something different. But I mention the previous one in case they are related. The problem now can be seen in the photos below. A couple of canes are affected. One is a new cane (green) and the other an old one (brown). Both have the same shrivelled brown leaves. The last photo shows the top of the affected green cane, which hasn't browned/shrivelled yet but isn't looking too happy and I suspect will soon follow.

Does anyone have any ideas what the problem might be and what can be done?

Many thanks

Max

[nickdub]

The new cane in the photo is definitely too far gone for recovery - best to dig it up carefully and move the roots on to a piece of polythene or similar and see if you can tell from an examination what the problem is - could be something nasty eating it below ground - also check the base of the stem where it comes out of the ground. I doubt its related to the problem with the leaf yellowing you had before. Once you've taken a couple of photos, dispose of the whole lot in a bin or at the recycling center.

[burnie]

Raspberries are quite hungry plants, do you give them a good mulch with compost or manure? this will also aid water retention.

[Russel Sprout]

OK, thanks for the advice. I'll dig up and take photos and add them later. Just hoping and praying it is not something that will spread.

If memory serves me correctly, I did mulch them at the start of the season (with shop bought manure I think) and again two or three months ago with grass clipping. Aside from that I haven't fed them much at all. I think maybe once with liquid feed (tomato food). In fact, it was something I have been meaning to look into. So if anyone has any advice as to what feed is best for raspberries, how often, etc. that would be very helpful. Oh, and I'm growing tayberries and wineberries too...

Cheers

[veggiechicken]

I think you said you have a mix of summer and autumn raspberries in the row. They behave differently, old stems dying back at different times.
I'd cut out the old fruited canes now, just to give the others a bit of room and air.

[Potstubsdustbins]

I grow in containers so it is slightly different, I feed high nitrogen at the beginning of the season approx every two weeks and then change to high potash (tomato feed) when fruiting starts again about once a fortnight.

[It never rains..it pours]

Hi max

Having been down this road with a couple of mine, it was magnesium deficiency (what isnt in miracle grow), added epsom salts and they are fine. Unfortunatly yours doesnt look like any deficiency I found on pictures at yara

Nitrogen Deficiency vs. Healthy Plant - Raspberry | Yara UK

If you dig them up, and the roots brown and not white it maybe raspberry root rot

https://www.google.com/search?q=rasp...w=1112&bih=909

Please let us know what you find out