Raspberry black mold/fungus

[Eoghan]

I have been struggling with ugly fruit with black mold. The hairs on the raspberry fruit often seem to be black. I am guessing it is a humidity problem. The fruit are there but they are not all top quality. Should I thin out the raspberry canes to increase air flow. I am willing to accept a lower fruit yield if they are all perfect with no discolouration.

Anyone else had this problem or found solutions. I suspect that being under polythene is the problem but opening doors will allow a flock of a dozen hens in.

I am more or less set on thinning but would like some advice. I have basically allowed the centre of the polytunnel to become a raspberry "briar thicket".

[Snoop Puss]

II suspect that being under polythene is the problem but opening doors will allow a flock of a dozen hens in.

Maybe you need a chicken wire screen door. Also, any reason why you couldn't transplant some canes outdoors? They're very hardy.

[ameno]

I've had this some years when it's been very wet as the fruit are ripening, but it's not common. There's nothing you can really do to prevent it but reduce humidity.

As said above, could you not just grow some outside? I would have thought even up where you are they would do okay outside in a sunny, sheltered spot.

[annie8]

I grow mine outside - in edinburgh- but find that the fruity is healthier and bigger if I thin a bit. Suspect it’s a combination of humidity and air flow. So I would thin a bit and see if you can come up with something to let air in the door.

[Eoghan]

Was going to thin but just sprayed. Outside they have yet to set fruit while inside I have been harvesting for a couple of weeks. The air temp outside is 14C, 19C in Glasgow and 24C in London. Undercover is the only way to get early reliable crops.

I am transplanting out but the hens wreck everything.

[Eoghan]

Anyone got any pictures of nicely spaced rows? I am also going to have to choose whether to prune this years growth (green) or last years (brown).

The brown canes of last year are fruiting better suggesting that it is an early fruiting variety? So I need to have both green canes for next year and brown canes for this year.

[Plot70]

I pulled a couple of canes out of a disused railway as they had good fruits on them in spite of not having been looked after.
I assumed they were summer cropping. They have now started flowering on green wood.
They are looking like they will fruit according to how they are pruned.
They were a bit leggy when found due to growing through nettles.

[Eoghan]

The fruit looks fine from a distance but there always seems to be black smudges nearest the stalk which I think (?) is the start of mould.

[ameno]

That's not the start of mould, it just is mould.
The furry parts you see on mould are just the fruiting body, not the whole organism.

[Eoghan]

Well I ate the first raspberry but not "the three".

I have pruned the centre of the briar patch to allow a bit more air to circulate. I removed as much infected fruit as I could so hopefully the next crop will be cleaner of mold.

It tasted OK. I just puzzle why the mold starts at the stalk each time.