Fertilizing raspberries from A to Z: when, what and how to fertilize raspberries for a rich harvest

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Powerful raspberry bushes strewn with large aromatic berries are the dream of every gardener. One of the most important conditions for its implementation is the timely application of fertilizers. Therefore, gardeners never cease to worry about how to feed raspberries in the fall and spring, in the summer during flowering and after fruiting, in order to have abundantly fruiting plants on the site.

Drought and moisture stagnation are detrimental to raspberries.

Varieties of raspberry dressings

Fertilizers can be applied in two different ways. The first is root, that is, watering is carried out at the root. There is also a foliar option, that is, by foliage. It is worth considering each option in more detail for a better understanding.

Root feeding

When choosing this method, fertilizers are introduced directly under the bushes or at some distance from them. Nutrients are distributed along the perimeter, forming small furrows. Then they dig in with earth. Most often, mineral fertilizers with macroelements or organic matter are used for root feeding.

Foliar feeding

For more abundant fruiting, foliar feeding must be used. Manipulations are most effective if raspberries need strictly defined microelements. That is, they are most often introduced as needed. Under no circumstances should they replace root ones.

Features and rules for adding useful additives

Immediately after planting, fertilizing raspberries in the spring with mineral fertilizers is not required for about 2 years. Next, gardeners develop a scheme based on the recommendations of colleagues and personal experience. Before cultivating the soil, check the crop for deficiency or excess of microelements. Next, the composition of the soil is studied (the normal acidity level for berries is pH 5.7–6.5). Next, the area is thinned out as necessary - the more branches that grow, the less nutrition each bush receives. All that remains is to apply the selected useful supplement according to the instructions. For heavy soils, peat and sand are suitable, for alkaline soils - sapropel and potassium, for clay soils - drainage from any materials.

Spring feeding: when and why

Raspberries are demanding when it comes to nutrition and react sharply to its deficiency. She needs all the micro and macro elements. The most important at this time are potassium and nitrogen, but do not forget about phosphorus. In general, fertilizers in the spring are necessary to increase yields and improve the taste of berries.

At this time of year, fertilizing should be applied according to a strict schedule. It is most convenient to focus on certain phases of raspberry development. But there is no need to rush with the first fertilizer, since the roots begin to absorb nutrients only after the soil warms up to +5-10 degrees. You need to wait until the bush awakens - at this time its buds will swell. Before applying fertilizer, weeds are removed, weeding and loosening are carried out. The crop needs an increased amount of nitrogen, which helps to increase green mass. The best choice is ammonium nitrate or urea.

Then fertilizers are applied before flowering, during budding. A lot of potassium and phosphorus are needed - they help the berries gain weight. You can add a little more nitrogen. The best option is diammofoska.

The following fertilizing is used during the flowering and beginning of fruiting periods. As much potassium and phosphorus as possible should be introduced. This will make the raspberries sweeter and more flavorful. Then fertilizers are introduced after harvesting. The plant will be able to prepare for winter and further fruiting. It needs phosphorus and potassium (you can take, for example, superphosphate and potassium sulfate).

Fertilizer rates are as follows:

• urea or saltpeter - 10 grams per square meter;
• wood ash - 40 kilograms per hundred square meters;
• manure - 1.5 kilograms per bucket of water, one liter per bush;
• nitrophoska - 2-3 spoons per 10 liters of water, 7 liters of composition per square meter;
• superphosphate – 250 grams per 10 liters of water;
• copper sulfate – 5 grams per 10 liters of water;
• boric acid – 15 grams per 10 liters of water.

Feed raspberries with potassium during flowering

Before you write whether flowering shrubs can be fertilized with yeast and chicken droppings, read about very important fertilizing. During budding, raspberries need potassium. This element will help make the berries large and sweet and increase plant immunity.

After feeding with potassium, raspberries overwinter better, and the berries are stored for a long time.

You can feed with monophosphate or potassium sulfate (potassium sulfate). Dilute the powder according to the instructions - 15-20 g per 10 liters of water. Water the shrubs in moist soil.

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Experienced gardeners recommend using potassium nitrate to feed raspberries at the beginning of flowering. In addition to potassium, the fertilizer contains a small percentage of nitrogen. Before fruiting, plants need a little nitrogen for more powerful growth of foliage and stems.

Prepare a solution from 20 g of powder and 10 liters of water. One linear meter of a row in a raspberry field is watered with 20 liters of ready-made potassium nitrate fertilizer.

It is important! Before feeding raspberries during flowering, inspect the bushes and remove any excess shoots that have grown. After pruning in the spring, there should have been about 15 plants per linear meter left in the raspberry patch. Soon new young shoots will grow very quickly, which are not needed at all. They should be cut out, otherwise the shoots will take food from the fruiting branches.

Don’t be afraid to feed raspberries with mineral fertilizers. If you dilute them and use them strictly according to the instructions, they will not accumulate in plants and will not cause any harm to the body.

By the way! In order for raspberry bushes to bear fruit well every year, be sure to fertilize after fruiting in August and autumn .

Features of autumn fertilizing

In the autumn, you can also use organic matter, which will strengthen the plant. Experts recommend introducing mature manure or rotted compost, peat, wood ash and bird droppings. The dosage and methods of application are as follows:

• manure - 6 kilograms per square meter, the composition goes deep into the ground;
• compost - similar to manure;
• peat - up to 3 kilograms per square meter, it is deepened into the ground or the soil surface is mulched between plantings;
• chicken manure - dilute with water and pour the prepared mixture over the raspberries; up to 7 liters will be required per bush.

It is advisable to alternate organic matter with mineral fertilizers. For example, next year you can use potassium (40 grams per square meter) or superphosphate (60 grams per square meter).

It is also worth noting that this time of year is considered the best opportunity to use green manure. Even in the summer, it will be necessary to plant mustard or clover between the raspberry bushes. After harvesting, they are buried in the ground.

Fertilizing raspberries with chicken droppings

We have already figured out that raspberries need potassium before fruiting, and we can spray them with boric acid. Nitrogen, which is contained in chicken droppings, is needed in small quantities at this time. This element is responsible for the growth of shoots and green mass, so plants are watered with it in early spring.

But if the raspberries at flowering have thin stems, little foliage and small or yellow leaves, nitrogen is needed. But first, inspect the shoots and leaves. Perhaps they do not grow and turn yellow due to pest damage. In this case, first treat the shrubs with special preparations to destroy harmful insects.

It is better to feed raspberries with a solution of chicken manure with potassium fertilizer:

1. Prepare a stock solution from bird droppings in advance. To do this, one part of the litter is poured with ten parts of water and left for 10 days.
2. A working solution of 1:10 is prepared from the infusion. That is, a liter jar of fertilizer is poured into a bucket of water.
3. To add potassium, dilute the chicken manure 1:9, then dilute 20 g of potassium sulfate or monophosphate granules in 1 liter of warm water and pour into the chicken manure solution.

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Each raspberry bush is watered with 5 liters of fertilizer.

Recommendations for fertilizing during planting

As you know, it is best to plant raspberries either in early May or mid-late October. It is recommended to prepare the soil for this event as early as possible. You should carefully dig it up over the course of a year and remove all weeds (with roots). When planting, the roots of the plant are straightened and clods of earth are removed from them, immersed in mullein solution and placed in a hole.

When planting in autumn, the following complex of nutrients is needed:

• organics – 15 kilograms per square meter;
• potassium – 30 grams per square meter (you can take 600 grams of wood ash instead);
• phosphorus - 45 grams per square meter.

If the soil is quite fertile, the share of fertilizers can be reduced by about 15%.

The most common mistakes gardeners make when applying fertilizers

When applying fertilizers, many novice gardeners make mistakes:

1. For each procedure there is a certain period in the growing season. If you don't meet deadlines, you won't be able to achieve the desired result.
2. Raspberries should be fed in moderation. An excess amount of nutrients is just as harmful to the plant as a deficiency.
3. Experts recommend following the technological process during the procedure. An equal amount of nutrient solution should be poured under each plant.
4. Do not use expired product when fertilizing. This has an adverse effect on the crop and will negatively affect the harvest. In addition, harmful substances can accumulate in the fruits, which will lead to dangerous consequences for humans.
5. Substances containing chlorine should not be used to feed raspberries. This culture does not accept it. Among other things, the plant can develop chlorosis. In this case, the leaves begin to fall and fruits do not set.

How to properly introduce organic matter

In order not to harm raspberries, it is necessary to correctly introduce organic elements. It is enough to follow these recommendations:

1. Before applying fertilizers, water the soil thoroughly. Otherwise, there is a risk of burning the root system.
2. The weather should be cloudy and not too hot. This protects against the occurrence of unwanted chemical reactions.
3. Organic fertilizers should be applied with extreme caution; they should not get on the stems and foliage.
4. When preparing organic-based infusions, you cannot close them too tightly, as they need air.

Signs of lack of feeding

Confidence in the immunity of raspberries can destroy the plant; any crop requires regular feeding, keeping a gardening calendar with notes from the gardener, making accurate calculations with what to fertilize the raspberries, in what quantity and for what time. Moreover, raspberries require special care.

The root system simply needs useful substances, especially the following:

• nitrogen;
• potassium;
• phosphorus.

It is possible to determine the lack or oversaturation of microelements by the state of the green part of the plant and the size of the fruit. All signs of improper development will be immediately noticeable even to a beginner in gardening.

Timely inspection contributes to proper crop care. Particular attention should be paid to the following:

• speed of growth and development of shoots. Very fast - excess nitrogen, poor intensity - lack of substance;
• the manifestation of stem dryness means a lack of magnesium and iron in the soil, which means the bush does not have enough of them;
• With a lack of phosphorus, spots and thickening of the veins appear on the greenery. It can also acquire a burgundy-violet color;
• brown foliage and small fruits indicate that the plant urgently needs potassium;
• thin stem and slow development - a problem with the amount of nitrogen.

Raspberries love a humid environment and are not afraid of direct sunlight.

Timely application of the required amount of fertilizer, organic fertilizing, replanting, monitoring development and condition will make the crop healthy and bring a delightful harvest.

When is the best time to fertilize raspberries in spring?

Spring feeding of raspberries should be carried out when all the snow has melted, but not before. This could be either at the end of March or at the beginning of April, it all depends on weather and climatic conditions. The general guideline for the right time for fertilization is the swelling of the first buds, but preferably no later than this. Early spring treatment of semi-bushes, loosening compacted soil and feeding the root system will give visible results in the summer when harvesting.

It is important to remember that micronutrients should never be applied to a layer of snow. In the spring, when abundant thawing begins, most of them will be washed away by water and will not have time to be absorbed into the ground.

When transplanting in autumn

Planting new raspberry bushes is recommended by gardeners in late August - early September. The berry crop takes root and produces the first harvest faster than seedlings purchased for the plot in the spring. Additional feeding will allow the root system to adapt faster and preserve strength for wintering.

When transplanting bushes to a new location, fertilizers are applied to the hole. To prepare the nutritional mixture you need to take:

• The earth dug out from the hole;
• Rotted manure or compost;
• Peat;
• River silt;
• Or one complex mixture based on peat, nitrogen and potassium.

Mineral fertilizers

Gardeners respect mineral complexes for their convenience and effectiveness of use. They are especially productive to use if you know about the lack of a specific element in the raspberry soil. When nutrition is applied to prevent soil depletion and prepare the berry plant for wintering, we recommend using complex types of mineral fertilizing.

Popular varieties of inorganics are divided into 3 types:

1. Nitrogen. In autumn, apply to the soil with caution, no more than 1-2 g per 1 m². If the dose is exceeded, nitrogen will provoke the growth of new shoots and the berry crop will die in winter. Among the nitrogen fertilizers are urea (carbamide), ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate 20-21%, 30-40 per 1 m².
2. Phosphorus. They do not disrupt the growth and rest cycles of plants, so they are used until the first frost and snow. Phosphorus is necessary for berry crops to strengthen immunity, stimulate growth and increase productivity. 1 raspberry bush will require 6 g of mineral fertilizer. You need to add organic matter with the following names: “Granulated double superphosphate” (or simple), “Phosphoric acid” 10-14%, “Ammophoska” 2-3 kg per 1 m².
3. Potassium. This is potassium magnesia, add 15-30 grams per bush; potassium sulfate - 20-30 g per 1 m².

Among the complex mineral fertilizers for raspberries in the fall, the following can be distinguished:

1. Aquarin;
2. Florivit;
3. Crystalon;
4. Master;
5. N.P.K.

It is correct to alternate mineral fertilizers with natural fertilizers annually. If you add mullein, compost, and ash this fall, next fall buy ready-made inorganic complexes and fertilize with them.