Sunday, June 16, 2013

I've finally figured out what has killed my raspberries......again.


Last year I lost all of my Meeker Raspberries. I had no idea why. They limped along. Got wilty, turned brown and crispy, and died. I replanted with Tulameen. They didn't even live as long as the Meekers. Sad and upsetting. Raspberries are my favourite food in the world!!! So it has been two seasons of disappointment. That said, you should see the Fallgolds. They are HUGE and thriving. In the same bed as the dead plants. I started reading yet again, trying to figure out what is happening. I'm sure all the seasoned gardeners out there recognize the symptoms of Root Rot. It turns out that both Meeker and Tulameen are very susceptible to root rot. Fall gold is not. I read about root rot last year, but could not accept the verdict. 
My neighbour Judy has several varieties of raspberries and has given me some plants. I am going to wait for them to send out the new shoots and put the shoots in the bed and see if they live. Judy doesn't know the names so I need to test them for resistance to Root Rot. I love Tulameen raspberries, so I will need to set up another raspberry bed somewhere for them.

I am hopeful that this is not the end of the raspberry story.

4 comments:

Gardeningbren said...

Oh well I am sorry. Yes, relocate...a drier area, maybe add more sand for quick drainage. I recall those at the farm were on a slope, rows aligned top to bottom. You just made me think of that, so perhaps good drainage should be strongly considered.

Will catch up on your blog posts I missed.

Joan said...

You are not having luck with your raspberries. Hopefully these new ones will work.

Erin said...

They were in a raised bed. The topsoil I put in was pretty heavy and clay like. So last yer after the Meekers died, I dug in in a lot of bags of compost and manure. It seemed lighter. The Fallgolds burst into growth. The tulameens died. If I were to dig in sand and amend like crazy, do you think I could ever plant there, or does this Root Rot last for years in the soil.

Erin said...

Thanks Joan. I hope so too. I definitely never give up. Just how I'm wired!! :-)