I have raspberries growing in 18 gal containers just east of a 6 ft. fence. They get sun until about 2-3 o'clock, depending on the season, and of course more as they get taller. They seem to do fine. Like you, I have shade issues from a gigantic rebuild to the south (and my own house to the east) so I have to be choosy about what will get the most sun and when during the day it gets it. It's also generally cool here, just a couple of blocks from the back bay. I grow the plants in containers because I have almost the exact opposite soil problem: dune sand. If I did manage to get the raspberries going in the ground they'd soon be everywhere, so elevated containers were my solution. They share a netted enclosure with my containerized blueberries. For the soil mixture I use more or less a poor-mans 5-1-1- mixture made with small pathway bark, peat moss and pearlite and a little dolomite. This mixture drains pretty well but does require constant added nutrition because there's not much in it. I originally start with a little Osmocote mixed in but it doesn't last forever.

Slow release non-organic fertilizers are the best for pots. Somehow, I have just never gotten organics to work very well with pots, as the pot just doesn't seem to develop "healthy soil" no matter what you do. So you must feed often, and from what I can tell, organics in pots are a waste of money. Something like Osmocote (or one of the slow-release knockoffs of that product) work best. And generally, the slow release formulas are heat dependant and will not release anything when it is very cold, (and when the plants are not growing anyways), so it is rather self regulating. If you can't use a slow-release formula, then anything else is fine as long as it is not very much at one time, and done often. As they say, weakly, weekly.

Shawn, not here..our prices are outrageous. Even at Walmart , HD and Lowes. That $6 laundry tub I got was on sale at a really cheap discount store that isnt open anymore. As an example, last year for mother's day I bought 2 plastic 12" pots to fill up for my mom & my grammy. Those 2 were packaged together. $24.99 for 2 lil 12" pots!! I don't want the big fancy pots..I just need pots for sinking into the ground. Barry, Your lucky! They dont let us do that anymore. You cant get a discount on anything cuz it's broken, they throw them out. And it's illegal to take anything out of the dumpster, its considered stealing from the store. Even with clothing, if you found something was ripped they'd give you a discount..not anymore, full price baby..I don't care if the sleeve is hangin by a thread. Jersey SUX!! Nurseries wont even give me any nursery pots. When they throw out a plant, the pot goes with it. So wasteful. On top of Jersey being so expensive, my town itself is really expensive. But, I grew up here, schools are great, so here I am. You really want me to blow your mind? People in my town pay $1300 and UP a month to rent a tiny studio apt on top of a store!! Psychotic. Don't even get me started on the houses. Karyn, yes please, if you can find out how much shipping would be, that would be great. Do you still have my address so you can figure ito out? If paypal is gonna charge you on that I can always send you an MO instead, that way we dont have to deal with BS charges. Thanks, hon! I'm getting nervous cuz our last frost date here is in a couple weeks, and I am so short. Farmers Almanac says 4-4, and other weather sites n such say 4-15. Thanks everyone, I am so pathetic, ;p lmao. Daniella

I'm looking for recommendations for a shrub or tree for screening purposes in Zone 7 (just north of Washington DC.) The hope is to screen a section of a concrete patio on one side of our house, which has a horrible concrete block retaining wall that is about 4ft tall in this spot. The only saving grace has been that the wall was covered in ivy and there was a tree on the property next door. Unfortunately the neighbors next door cut down the tree and pulled out the ivy (the capstone to a 2yr long teardown/construction process) and so now my kitchen window faces a view that resembles a prison yard, with the added thrill of the neighbor's electrical panel. I want to cover the wall while additionally providing a modicum of privacy from the neighboring house. I've got a similar problem in the front of the house, but at least there I can make use of a planting bed between the retaining wall and the driveway. Some color would be nice, but I prefer something that might survive year round so I'm guessing that I'll have to go with some kind of conifer. If anyone can recommend something more creative than arborvitae, I'd be grateful!