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Why Are Raspberries Hairy – Detailed Information

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Raspberries are deciduous shrubs, which can reach a height of one and a half to two and a half meters. The roots are overgrown with many adventitious roots, resulting in a powerful branched root system.

Stems are erect, with the young shoots herbaceous, juicy, green, covered with a bluish bloom, and frequent small thorns. In the second year of life, the stems become woody and turn brown, and after fruiting, they dry up, but new shoots grow in their place next year.

Raspberry leaves are alternate, petiolate, oval, and compound, with three to seven ovoid leaves. The upper side of the leaf plate is dark green, and the lower one is whitish due to pubescence.

There are white flowers, which are no more than one centimeter in diameter and are collected in the apical axillary racemes. Raspberries are popular among gardeners, which are tasty and healthy for the human body but have hairy. So, why are raspberries hairy?

Raspberry Cascade Why Are Raspberries Hairy
Raspberry Cascade via Flickr

Why Are Raspberries Hairy?

Raspberries hairy are the remains of the pistils in the female part of the flower. These hairy helps to turn berries into edible fruits. Raspberries are cluster fruits, which means that one fruit grows into a bristle. Typically, every berry results from pollinated white flowers containing many hairy pistils.

Likewise, raspberries’ hairy helps to protect the fruits from insect damage. In some varieties, small hairs are more visible than in others and are virtually absent in blackberries.

Where To Plant Raspberries

When planting raspberries, you need to choose a sunny place as possible. Shading makes the young shoots stretched and doesn’t have time to be woody in winter. 

Fruits formed in the shade are smaller, sour, and more often affected by pests. Raspberries do not tolerate waterlogged soil, high groundwater above 1.5 m from the soil surface, and even short-term flooding.

Therefore, they should never be planted in lowlands and depressions, where rain or meltwater can linger. 

It is very desirable to protect raspberries from the wind, so it makes sense to place them near fences or under the protection of trees. In addition, raspberries tend to form abundant growth and become an occupier, so you should not plant them close to other crops.

Where To Plant Raspberries Why Are Raspberries Hairy
via pxfuel

Soil For Raspberries

The optimal soil for raspberries is medium loamy, well-drained, slightly acidic, or neutral. Sandy soils are also suitable, provided that they are thoroughly refilled with organic matter and abundant watering.

You can plant raspberries on clay soils if they are well-drained and not flooded. Raspberries do not tolerate saline, very acidic, and alkaline soils.

It is believed that it is necessary to prepare a place for raspberries in advance. For spring planting, start in autumn, and for autumn planting, start from mid-summer. 

However, many gardeners prepare the soil immediately before planting, so this method can also be considered acceptable. The earth is well dug up; then one square meter is applied. Use 2-3 buckets of humus or compost, 150-200 g of superphosphate, and 70-80 g of potassium salt.

When To Plant Raspberries

Raspberry seedlings are planted in spring or autumn in containers throughout the warm season. The timing of the spring raspberries planting is determined according to the actual weather. This is done after the snow melts and the establishment of a more or less stable above-zero temperature. 

Do not delay planting because frosts and even return frosts are dangerous though not like planting too late or storing seedlings for a long time. In the fall, raspberries are planted from about mid-September to mid-October. 

How To Plant Raspberries

  1. Bush planting

Bush planting of raspberries is done where each bush is planted in a separate hole with a diameter of 30-40 cm and 40-50 cm depth. The planting hole is prepared and filled in advance not one plant is planted in it, but 3-4.

  1. Trench planting

Trench planting of raspberries differs in that the seedlings are placed not in separate pits but a trench of arbitrary length. The depth of the channel should be about 50 cm, width – 50-60 cm.

You can plant raspberries in one or more rows. It is more convenient to take care of the raspberry tree, where all the plants are located in a narrow row, and the shoots are evenly distributed and tied to a wire between the posts.

When the water table is high or in areas with rainy summers, it is best to plant raspberries on hills or ridges to raise them above the general ground level. In arid regions, on the contrary, it is better to plant it in furrows so that moisture at the roots persists longer.

>> Related Post: 18 of the Edible Vine Plants to Grow Vertically at Home

Raspberries care

  1. Watering

Raspberries are demanding water. With a lack of moisture, shoots and set berries die, and replacement shoots grow poorly.

Moreover, the root system can also die from drying out since it lies shallow. However, water stagnation is also harmful to raspberries because it leads to the death of small suction roots. 

The optimal irrigation regime during active growth and fruiting is 1-2 times a week. In hot and dry summers, you can water more often, and in the rainy season, water less often. Water abundantly at the root and avoid water getting on the leaves.

  1. Mulching the soil 

Mulching the soil for raspberries helps maintain the moisture in the upper soil layers and prevents the formation of a soil crust, impairs the roots’ aeration. 

In hot summers, mulch protects the soil from overheating, and in cold summers, it protects it from hypothermia. In addition, mulching suppresses the growth of weeds and some pests. 

  1. Feeding

Feeding raspberries are needed throughout the season. Raspberries are responsive to feeding with organic matter, like bird droppings (1:20) and mullein (1:10). The timely application of mineral fertilizers also affects it well. 

It is important to remember that nitrogen fertilizers promote the growth of green mass to the detriment of fruit setting and the ripening of shoots for winter.

Therefore, they are applied only at the beginning of the season to control the amount. Excess nitrogen in raspberries manifests itself in the growth of thick shoots and thick dark green leaves.


Conclusion

Raspberries are the most valuable crops since the berries contain many beneficial substances for the human body. Typically, raspberry jam is the most delicious cure for colds.

Tea made from raspberry leaves and twigs helps to improve the digestive system, helps with heartburn and ulcers, saves from nausea during pregnancy, and enriches the body with vitamins. So, with this article, you now know why raspberries are hairy.