There could be some variety of raspberry that will be contained by grass, but that is not typical behavior for raspberry plants. Typically, they spread, relentlessly. The roots spread laterally, about 3 inches underground. They can extend 4 or 5 feet, before they pop up and a new shoot emerges. They can go right under a fenceline, and come up in the neighbors yard. We have everbearing red raspberries; I'm not sure the variety. In the fall, I cut them back to about 10 inches, and the canes go on the compost pile. Then, I mulch them heavily with about 8 inches of shredded leaves, from our maple tree. This helps keep the weeds down, I don't think the raspberry plants need protection from winter weather. Every year, we get volunteer raspberry plants in our lawn. These get dug out, or mowed down repeatedly.

Highbrix:

All caneberries do better when surrounded by heavy mulch. I nearly bury mine in 8 inches of stable manure at least once a year, and they prosper. Mulch does not bring disease, and slugs are not an issue with caneberries.

Grass growing into berry beds is a pain in the neck, and like any common weed, competes with the plants for moisture and nutrients. Use whatever tool you like, but try to get the grasses out of the beds before they become established. Then mulch to keep them out.

Grass in your adjacent pathways is fine, but it will not prevent spreading raspberries from popping up. Some people pull them out when they do this; others mow them along with the grass. Eric has the system.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Hey Eric and Don,
Thank you guys very much for the advice. I greatly appreciate it. I will go ahead and weed the beds and then mulch like you suggest. It is also good to know that the grass won't be enough to stop the suckers! I was already making plans for putting in 4x4s and wire for trellising (which is typical of me). I need to master the basics first!!

Just out of curiosity, are you guys using drip lines to fertilize and water? I've got a soaker hose network running through the beds right now to make water and fertilization easier.

Thanks!!
Terry

Here in Madison, Wisconsin, our soil is high in clay, and retains moisture well. Also, our back yard is getting rainwater runoff from several directions, and the grass is very lush. Our raspberry patch gets hand watered in the summer drought, but that's about it. I fertilize with Miracle-Gro in the spring, and I do some pruning during the growing season, mostly so there is an aisle for me use when picking fruit.

We get some japanese beetles every year, and they mostly attack the raspberry patch, and ignore the garden. I fill a small plastic cup 1/2 way with warm water and dish detergent, and flick the jb's into the cup. This solution kills them in about 30 seconds. But this method is labor intensive, & you have to do it every day when they are around, to be effective. Maybe someone else has a better idea-I'm listening.

I do the same thing you do Eric. I've got a bigger bucket that I fill about 3 inches deep with soapy water. The beetles have an instinct to dive when startled, so all you have to do is hold the bucket under them and brush them in (I wear gloves). At a certain point the beetles get too much for me every year though and I give up and start ignoring the raspberries. That's why I like to get the summer crop on my Heritage because that comes before the worst of the beetles.

One of the entomologists at the UW said that once the beetles have been around for about 10 years that their populations in the area start to decline. Unfortunately, I'm at year three or four and I had about a million of them last year.

Oh, and back to your original question - my raspberries are the one thing I don't bother weeding. I used a lot of mulch the first two years, but now I leave them alone and they out compete everything, even the grass.

Hi folks.....recently I was talking to my neighbors and found out they had raspberries and had a hard time to get rid of them. First off I was amazed that they would grow in so cal in the south bay area. I did see here on this webby that someone in Long Beach had no problemo's. So my question to you experts is, can you grow them successfully in perhaps a very large container?

SoCalliegal-
Raspberries don't make great container plants. It's better to plant them in the ground with some sort of containment barrier around them. Sometimes, this containment barrier can even be simply grass, and you go around them with your lawn mower to keep them in check.
-Glenn