There's lots of raspberry canes. Thankfully, the label has been left on one variety.
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I know that Glen Ample is a summer fruiting raspberry so it will bear fruit on last year's growth. How I know which is last year's growth though is another matter.
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There's no sign on these raspberries so I don't know if they're summer fruiting or autumn fruiting. Each are treated differently when it comes to pruning.
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I do know that there were some berries left on them when we took on the allotment in October, so perhaps that would indicate that they're autumn fruiting. The berries were yellow, something a bit different from the usual red.
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There's a blackberry. This also has the label left on it but it doesn't give its name.
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This is a gooseberry bush, lots of mean looking thorns. I've also got a red thornless gooseberry which has yet to be planted at the plot.
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There's about six currant bushes along this hedge, I don't know if you can see them properly in this photo.
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I don't know whether they're black, white or red currants. I wonder if there's a way to find out before the fruit is produced. I've got a black currant bush at home which is destined for the plot.
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I don't know what this bush is but it's very big. Time will tell.
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Here's the strawberry patch. I'll wait and see how productive it is this year before making a decision on whether it stays or goes. Strawberry plants only last about three years before the yield is reduced.
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There looks to be plenty of rhubarb. It's just starting to grow again now.
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I don't know what variety it is but I've got a Stockbridge Arrow crown at home which is waiting to be planted out at the allotment.
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I think we've been extremely fortunate to be offered a plot with so much fruit on it. It all looks to have been looked after so well too, all the canes are tied in to supports. I've also got a tayberry to plant, I think it's going to be a very fruity year.
Oh wow you have loads of soft fruit to come. I cant tell the difference between my current bushes so I would also be interested if anyone else has an idea.
ReplyDeleteWe've gone from very little to the promise of a bumper harvest. I think I'll have to just wait until the currants are produced to find out what the bushes are.
DeleteWhat a great variety of plants. Lucky you. I'm sure you'll find out what they all are as and when they fruit. Our rhubarb is peeping through now.
ReplyDeleteLove from Mum
xx
I think we'll be spoilt for choice when they all start fruiting. I'm looking forward to some rhubarb crumbles this year.
DeleteIt might be worth getting a copy of The Ten-Minute Fruit-Growing Diary by Val Bourne which I'm sure would be most useful.
ReplyDeleteI have a mix of raspberries so I just tidy them up in the autumn then in the spring prune any obviously dead stems and mostly leave the rest.
Flighty xx
I've already got a copy of that book so I shall have a read of it. It's a book which was bought with the flower and vegetable versions and I must admit, the fruit book has languished on the bookshelf as I haven't had much fruit to read up on until now. I think some of my raspberries are summer fruiting and some are autumn so they'll need pruning differently if I'm to coax them in to fruiting as they should.
DeleteI'm completely mystified about which is which in my own raspberry canes (and I have no excuse as I planted them myself!)
ReplyDeleteOh dear, there may not be any hope for me then. I think some serious swatting up is in order, I might have more of a clue then.
DeleteLovely post Jo I think the darker the wood means last years fruiting stock so you cut them down to the ground and tie in the green steam ones which will be this years fruiting ones I am planning some more fruit trees and bushes as well
ReplyDeleteAhh, I need to look at the colours then. I'll be interested to see which fruits you're going to add to your collection. My fruit collection is huge now in comparison to what I had a couple of years ago.
DeleteI have exactly the same problem with inherited raspberries. They seem to be all muddled in together as well, which doesn't help. After last year's disappointing results I think it's going to be a case of replacing the canes. Or at least.. that's what I thought until I saw the price tag on yours!
ReplyDeleteYou've been extremely fortunate with what you've taken on. Exciting times.
They're not cheap, are they? I'm so glad I haven't had the outlay for them myself, we've been so fortunate inheriting a plot with so much fruit already planted on it.
DeleteThat won't have been the price for just one cane - they are usually sold in bundles, If they paid that for just one plant they were robbed!
DeleteI realise that. There's a 5 in brackets on the label, so I suppose this could be the price for five canes.
DeleteYou have done well for inherited fruit. Glen Ample is a good raspberry too. As for old raspberry canes it's similar to how I explained the old tayberry canes.. If you had yellow raspberries I bet in them being autumn fruiting -maybe All Gold like ours so these need cutting down to ground level.
ReplyDeleteThat gooseberry looks like it hasn't had a good prune for a while too.
I can identify my red/white/blackcurrants before fruiting but it is difficult from photos.
Interested to know what the mystery plant turns out to be - it also looks as though it hasn't been pruned in a while.
I'm really pleased with everything we've inherited. We're so lucky with this plot, so much fruit left behind, a shed too, but most importantly, the soil looks in great shape and we haven't come across any waterlogging yet like we had at our old plot. It makes such a difference. I'm wondering if the Glen Ample raspberries have been pruned already. If you look at the first photo of the label, you can see a cane which has been cut. I'll have to take a closer look when I go down there again. I'm a bit worried to cut all the yellow raspberries down in case they're not autumn fruiting ones. Mind you, I suppose the worst that could happen is that I don't get any fruit from them this year. I'm looking forward to finding out what the mystery plant is. When I saw the leaves in October I thought it was some kind of currant, but I could be wrong.
DeleteGlen Ample should have been pruned but will they have when they were leaving. Do any canes look old and brown or have remnants of fruiting sideshoots?
DeleteShould have mentioned if you are a bit worried about pruning the yellow fruiting one then just cut down half of the canes. I can't think of any commonly available yellow fruiting variety though other than the autumn fruiter, You could also wait 'til you see new shoots forming at ground level around March/April time.
DeleteLike I say, I'll have to have a proper look at them when I go again, but the previous plot owners seemed very diligent and conscientious so they could very well have pruned them already.
DeleteThat's a really good idea, at least I wouldn't lose the whole crop if they turn out to be summer fruiting raspberries then. Mind you, I don't suppose I'd lose anything by waiting either.
DeleteYou definitely lucked out with your new plot Jo!! I hope that you figure out the raspberries, disaster otherwise!! I guess that it will be a certain amount of working things out this year to see what appears when. Lots of fun though and lots to eat too!! xx
ReplyDeleteI'm so pleased with our new plot, we've been so lucky being offered it. I think you're right, this year will be all about working things out and I'm sure it will all be fun. I can't wait for the new gardening season to start.
DeleteStill subscribing to your comments, because you are so lovely to reply Jo!! xx
DeleteThank you, but don't take too much on, I know you're a very busy lady.
DeleteWhat a fantastic lot of fruit. I'm afraid I've never mastered identifying raspberries but I seem to remember reading somewhere (possibly Bob Flowerdew) that you could treat them all the same and they'd just fruit later? I could be wring though, it wouldn't be the first time!
ReplyDeleteWe've struck lucky with this plot with everything that has been left on it. I've never grown raspberries before so I haven't really got a clue what I'm doing with them, I'm sure I'll learn though.
DeleteI've just found this link that does say you can prune them all the same http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/1997/2-7-1997/raspprune.html
DeleteThank you. That's really interesting. So you could get two crops from autumn fruiting raspberries going by that information, definitely worth considering.
DeleteHow large are allotments over in the UK. They seem so much larger than in the US. I have one here in Upstate NY (Troy) and it is about 9' x 24'. Tiny compared to yours with so many different plots, a storage shed and compost areas and berries/fruit trees. You're so luck! Can't wait to see everything in full production this summer.
ReplyDeleteBest,
KK @ www.preppypinkcrocodile.com
A full size plot is usually around 250 square metres or 300 square yards, however, the waiting lists for an allotment are so long over here that many sites now issue half plots in order to reduce the time it takes to acquire a plot. My plot is about two thirds of the normal size, though I haven't actually measured it, I'll have to do that. It's great that you've got somewhere to grow veggies, even if it is a small space.
DeleteOh Jo what a treasure trove of fruit you've inherited. There are going to be lots of pies, crumbles, jam and other goodies coming out of your kitchen later this year!
ReplyDeleteI hope so. I don't think I'll know what to do with it all, I've only seriously grown strawberries in the past but if everything on the plot produces some fruit we'll be eating it all summer.
DeleteWow, that is a dream!! Very nice fruit trees and bushes I have always wondered of:) Good luck with your new allotment (I have a new one too, so I will gather inspiration from your posts)! You may explore my website: www.zahradavsrdci.weebly.com :)
ReplyDeleteWe've been very lucky having all these fruit bushes left on the plot we've taken on. Thank you for your good luck wishes, I shall pop over to your blog to have a look. I hope we both do really well on our new plots.
DeleteWhat a fantastic variety of fruit you've inherited. And it will be quite exciting to see what some of it is. I've got some Glen Ample raspberries and they're wonderful. When I took over my plot I had strawberries that looked a lot like yours, but they didn't do anything at all. As soon as there's a dry spell they'll be coming out. I hope yours do better, it's always worth giving them a year to see if they are productive.
ReplyDeleteI think we'll be spoilt for choice when it all starts producing. Strawberries are my favourites so I hope they do ok, but you never can tell, I may have to put a new bed in next year.
DeleteYou can't beat plenty of fruit Jo. I have quite a bit on my main plot and have been planting up more on the bee plot to make it very low maintenance,...it really is to be more of an orchard/herb garden than veggies so that there will be very little disturbance to the bees. I can't wait to see how well the new ones produce. Here's hoping we have a great fruity year!!
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that everything goes on to produce well. I didn't have much fruit on my old plot so I've gone from barely nothing to quite a bit, I just need to learn how to look after it all now.
DeleteYou've really taken on an excellent plot there, Jo. It'll be fun seeing what appears over the coming year. I'd love to be able to get up to ours and get started but it's like a quagmire up there and it's raining again. It's going to take such a long time for it to dry out.
ReplyDeleteWe've been so lucky with our new plot, our old one had nothing left on it at all when we took it on so quite a difference. The soil at the new plot looks to drain quite well, different again from the old plot which used to have standing water.
DeleteWhen I bought in rhubarb plants they turned out to be the very same variety as the one I had inherited on out plot!
ReplyDeleteIt's year two on my raspberry planting so I am hoping for the first crop on my Glen Ample and Glen Moy canes. No yellow varieties though. I've pruned back my blackcurrant (severely) redcurrant and gooseberry bushes (not so severely) too. So hoping for a bumper year. Here's hoping.
I don't know which rhubarb variety or varieties are on my plot, so the same thing could very well happen to me. I've never grown raspberries before, and to be honest, I've not very fond of them, but I'm still looking forward to getting a crop from them. Mick and Eleanor like them, so they won't go to waste. Fingers crossed that we both get a bumper crop from our fruit this year.
DeleteWow, that's alot of fruit. Hope you get fab harvests this year. I always think of fruit as a little confusing to care for but surely it just takes getting used to it. I'd love to expand and grow more fruit, maybe some day in the future.
ReplyDeleteWe've done so well to inherit a plot with so much fruit already planted on it. I'm currently reading up on all the fruit I've got to take care of as I haven't the first clue about it, but as you say, I'm sure I'll get used to it.
DeleteI always think having a new garden or allotment is so exciting....you just don't know what's going to grow. Sounds like you'll have a lot of fun watching what those fruit bushes become.Lovely. Oh you lucky thing getting a free rhubarb, I'm surprised to see it coming up, no sign of mine at all. It is very mild though.xxx
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to finding out what everything is, especially that big bush. I can't wait to make some rhubarb crumbles, it looks like I'll have enough rhubarb to make plenty.
DeleteYou hardly need to plant anything, with all that "Legacy"! I see jam in your future...
ReplyDeleteI may need to replace the strawberry bed, but I think that's about it for fruit. It means I can concentrate on the veggies. I can see jam in my future too with all that fruit, I'll have to use it up somehow.
DeleteHow lucky for you in inheriting all those fruit bushes and as you said you will be supplementing them with your own. The only thing I can say about telling whether black, red or white currants is when they are in leaf the blackcurrant leaves smell delicious of blackcurrant, you can make a sorbet from the leaves.
ReplyDeleteWe've been really lucky with the amount of fruit left behind on the plot. That's interesting to know about backcurrants, I shall be smelling all the leaves once they've grown again.
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