Cutting down only half of autumn raspberries in Febuary?

[kippers garden]

Last night on 'The Edible Garden' Alys said that she only cuts back half her autumn fruiting raspberries in February each year as this way she gets earlier fruit on the canes she didn't cut down  She also says she doesn't do this to the same canes each year as this would weaken the canes, she alternates it (which is why she only leaves half uncut each year),

I was wondering if anyone on here does this and if you laeve the canes every other year as she suggests then wouldn't it eventually weaken the canes?

If it works as she says then the earlier fruit would be great...but is this too good to be true?

[kippers garden]

[goodlife]

Yep...I do that ..but it doesn't weaken nothing... ::)
In spring..when I prune autumn ones..I leave couple of canes per plant uncut..these will fruit earlier..and as new canes are starting to grow and have reached half way the old ones then I remove the old ones..just purely to give room for the newbies,,as otherwise they struggle to grow strong and "straight".
I wonder if this is what she really meant with "weakening"..but if you "double crop it" then you have to remember to feed and mulch(water) a bit more too ;)

[shirlton]

I suppose it would be the sensible thing to do if you were short of room and didn't have room for the summer fruiters.

[goodlife]

Ahh...that is exactly why I do it..not for me, but in clients garden..maximise the space..

[gypsy]

I have tried this but the earlier fruit had maggoty things in and were smaller. The later fruit was big and clean, no bugs. So now I cut them all down and tie in the new growth, then wait ages for the fruit.

[goodlife]

Gypsy...I think you were just unlucky to get the "maggoty" things in your fruit...some years you get them some not..

[lillian]

How much earlier do you get a crop if you cut alternate canes? Is it is worth having summer fruiting raspberries?

[OllieC]

I'm always bleating on about this! The reason they are cut down before the new growth is that commercially it saves a fortune to run a tractor over them with a cutter rather than pruning by hand. This has trickled down into home growing myth as being the best way to grow them - but unless you're using a tractor, there's no point! Prune out wood that has fruited is the best advice for all raspberries. You'll get a longer season and a higher overall yield.

[cacran]

I have cut down my autumn fruiting raspberries to withing about 1 inch ever year for the past 4 (since I got the allotment) I have fruit galore. Can't keep up with picking it. When I have chopped it down it makes weed clearing easier, too.