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Raspberries are a berry with which humanity has been familiar since ancient times. There is probably no such garden or vegetable garden in Russia where this berry, which is as tasty as it is healthy, grows. But how little gardeners still know about it.
Remontant raspberry, with its appearance, first stirred up all enthusiastic gardeners. This culture became extremely popular, so much so that everyone was ready to forget about ordinary raspberries. But everything turned out to be not as simple as it seemed at first, and as it was written in enthusiastic advertising brochures. Many gardeners who planted it on their plots and strictly followed the recommendations did not receive the gigantic harvests that were promised to them. For some, disappointment reached such a level that they even uprooted all remontant raspberry varieties.
But, as always, the truth is somewhere in the middle, and remontant raspberries can, under certain conditions, actually produce a yield that is superior to that of conventional raspberry varieties.
So, first things first.
What are remontant raspberries?
Many novice gardeners, when encountering it for the first time, do not very well understand what it means.
Of course, if you imagine that instead of the usual two to three weeks of fruiting of traditional raspberry varieties, raspberries appear that are capable of bearing fruit all summer and even all autumn, then the picture turns out to be very tempting. It is not surprising that a large number of people, without thoroughly understanding what the remontant nature of raspberries consists of, hastened to purchase these varieties. And soon enough, disappointed, she completely rejected the new product, not wanting to see anything outstanding in it.
In fact, remontant raspberries are raspberries that are distinguished by their ability to bear fruit on both one-year and two-year-old shoots.
A little history
Despite the fact that in Russia remontant varieties officially began to be grown only in the last 20-30 years, they have been known for quite a long time. Already more than 200 years ago they were first described raspberry varieties, which differed in that at the end of summer individual flowers appeared on their annual shoots, which then turned into berries. Even in Russia, in the southern regions, individual representatives of such raspberry plants were found. And Michurin at one time even developed a separate variety called “Progress”, which was distinguished by the fact that in favorable conditions, on annual growth, it produced a small harvest of berries in the fall.
But until the 70s of the last century, no one in Russia was engaged in breeding remontant varieties of raspberries. Professor Kazakov made a significant contribution to the development of new remontant varieties.
Features of remontant raspberries
In the spring, when warm days arrive, new annual shoots grow from the underground part of the remontant raspberry bushes. Already in the summer they bloom, and from August they produce a lot of berries. From one raspberry bush, depending on the variety, you can collect from 1.5 to 3.5 kg of berries. With the onset of winter, the entire upper fruit-bearing part of the shoots dies. But the rest overwinters safely and next year in the summer fruit branches form on it, from which the first harvest can be harvested.
At the same time, the so-called second harvest is also formed on new shoots by autumn. It is precisely due to the formation of two harvests, separated in time, on shoots of different ages that there is a feeling of constant fruiting of remontant raspberries from July until frost. But this is only in theory. In practice, many gardeners note that the berries of the first harvest are quite small and somewhat dry, and the second harvest is formed so late that for most regions of Russia it simply does not have time to ripen.
Therefore, it was recommended to grow remontant raspberries practically as an annual crop. That is, in late autumn, all shoots are cut off completely at ground level. And in the spring, when young shoots form again, they produce an earlier (from the beginning of August) and abundant harvest. In autumn, all shoots are cut back to the roots. Thus, instead of two waves of fruiting, there remains one, but abundant and guaranteed.
With this method of growing raspberries, you will not be able to enjoy them throughout the summer and autumn, but a big plus is the fact that when pruning shoots for the winter, numerous pests and sources of infection for raspberries are removed along with them. In addition, due to the shift in berry ripening towards autumn, all phases of raspberry development are shifted in time and they no longer coincide with the main phases of activity of the main raspberry pests. Therefore, the berries of remontant raspberries practically do not get sick and damage from insects can rarely be found in them.
True, for the southern regions of Russia, the attractiveness of extended fruiting periods for remontant raspberries still remains relevant. Indeed, in the south, even the latest raspberry harvests, as a rule, have time to ripen. In addition, remontant raspberry varieties are characterized by increased frost resistance, which allows the berries to remain undamaged on the bush during small short-term frosts and to develop further when warm, fine days arrive.
Therefore, in the southern regions of Russia, remontant raspberries are grown differently:
- In autumn, raspberries are not pruned at all.
- In the spring, all the frail and weak ones are removed from the emerging shoots, so that in the end there are from three to six strong new shoots left.
- In May - early June, when the shoots grow to a height of about one meter, their tops are pinched.
- As a result, they are heavily overgrown with new fruit branches, from which, starting in September, they can already be harvested.
- By this time, the shoots of last year have already given up their berries and are completely cut out so as not to deprive the young shoots of nutrition. This results in almost continuous fruiting.
The above two methods of growing remontant raspberries are illustrated in the photo below.
Among the features of remontant raspberries, it is necessary to take into account that due to the heavy load, they are somewhat more demanding in terms of growing conditions. She needs the brightest and warmest place on the site. In addition, it needs constant and abundant feeding and watering. Without creating these conditions, obtaining two harvests becomes impossible.
In addition, it must be taken into account that during the season the total number of berries with two harvests will remain the same as with one. The harvest is simply split into two parts. Therefore, each gardener decides for himself, based on his own climatic conditions, which method of growing and pruning remontant raspberries to choose.
Differences between remontant raspberries and ordinary ones
The main question that torments every novice gardener who has little experience in growing raspberries is how to distinguish remontant raspberries from regular ones. Of course, externally, for example, their seedlings are practically no different. After all, remontant raspberries are not some special wonder of the world. This is an ordinary raspberry, in which certain properties have been enhanced and strengthened through selection. These properties can serve as signs of difference.
So, to summarize the above, we can consider how remontant raspberry varieties differ from ordinary ones:
- Remontant raspberries bear fruit twice a year if not pruned, and ordinary raspberries bear fruit once.
- The overall yield of remontant raspberries, even if they are cut off and left with one harvest, is greater than that of ordinary ones. This can be seen quite clearly in the photo.
- When pruning in autumn, the only harvest of remontant raspberries ripens closer to autumn, and ordinary raspberries bear fruit in June - July.
- The total fruiting period, even with a single harvest, for remontant raspberries is about two months under favorable weather conditions, and for ordinary raspberries only 2-3 weeks.
- In remontant raspberries, flowers and fruits are located more throughout the stem, including in the lower axils of the leaves, while in ordinary raspberries, they can be found only at the ends of the shoots. Look at the photo below.
- Due to the ability of remontant raspberry flowers to self-pollinate, it does not need replanting with other varieties for pollination.
- Remontant raspberries, according to some experts, differ from the ordinary variety in the taste of the berries. In remontant raspberries it is deeper and richer, but this is a moot point, since taste characteristics are a very delicate matter.
- Remontant raspberries are much more demanding on planting and growing conditions than ordinary ones.
Both remontant and regular raspberry varieties deserve to grow in your garden. Each of these varieties has its own advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it is better if they grow together, and then you can enjoy the taste of raspberries throughout the warm season.
