Hello, I read up on pruning raspberries and it sounds like the approach is different depending on whether it’s primocane or floricane. I bought some native raspberries “Rubus leucodermis” that I want to try growing and the issue is - I cannot find if it’s floricane or primocane. Is there some reliable way to tell which one it is? Especially since it sounds like primocanes will still produce some reduced crop on old canes. Should I cut it and see if anything grows on the first year canes?
The variety you have, Google says it’s a black raspberry so it’s more than likely a floricane variety.
“Flowering and fruiting second year”
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Thanks! That also matches some pictures I found online so it has to be floricane. Now I am just hoping it’s as tasty as the internet claims.
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You should try Crimson Night raspberries 
it’s underrated 
I have 2 plants and I’m thinking of creating another pot and buying more of it because i love it so much.
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I’m on the fence about getting rid of my niwot black raspberry since it’s been weird since i got it
It volunteered in my backyard. I can confirm that it is floricane like most other rubus.
Thanks, I’ll read up on it!
How is it? Is it something with an easy sweet flavor a kid would it?
I really liked it and my little kids loved it. The thorns are hooked so it’s a little tricky to pick. whenever you get caught you have to push your hand forward before pulling it out
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Thanks! How sunny is your location? When reading online, sources differ a lot on it and suggest anything from full sun to full shade. Being native to PNW, I have no doubt it will be ok in full shade, just worried what level of sun is necessary for tasty fruit, while at the same time to survive our summer sun.
full sun with a little bit of irrigation would be best. It likes the same conditions that red raspberries do
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I grew every variety of black raspberry that currently exists… i dont think that blackcaps the whitebark ones were worth growing myself. YMMV.
Jewel is worth growing and so is MacBlack. At least to me.
Pruning is pretty simple for primocane fruiting… just cut them to the ground after the canes are spent… either in the late Fall or early Spring… Its way too much hassle to deal with floricane fruit while primocanes are growing i think.
Simpler terms- primocane fruiting ones are usually late… so if you dont want late berries then dont fool with primocane fruiting ones.
Since you live in Seattle i would just go with Cascade Delight red rasps… they are devine and floricane fruiting. Jewel Black Rasps will give you all that you want in a black rasp. If you like yellows and purples then that is a different topic.
If you want to pay it forward… get us some Willamette Thornless Marionberries for us to grow. They are sold all over the PNW…just not at any nurseries. I would love to have them here.
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Ohh since you grew them all, what are your favorites, is it Jewel and MacBlack? To be honest, it was somewhat of an impulsive purchase. I was shopping for various natives to fill up spots in my yard, they had the blackcaps, internet told me they taste very good and I purchased a few.
Cascade Delight is already on my list but I couldn’t find where to buy it yet. I also purchased a few of Vintage and Fall Gold today too. Also thanks for reminding me about Marionberries! I wanted to grow them for so long that I ended up completely forgetting about them when I started planting berries. I’ll try to find a few right now.
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Im going to give Allen one more year and see but the others were very similar and some were just too small to be worth it compared to seed size. However if one were just making jams and jellies and removing seeds then there are of course some that are very productive. Yes for me the amount of work involved in pruning and training and all of the laterals going everywhere… i thought that Jewel and MacBlack were worthy of growing. Fresh eating and making jam. My climate and growing conditions arent as nice as yours so maybe others would do better for you.
If you want a nice gold…its hard to beat Cascade Gold.
I considered Cascade Gold but this place is telling me it’s “very susceptible to root rot”. Which is kind of weird, with how they are named after Cascades, and all.
I also really wanted to grow “Tulameen” but had to give up on it for the same reason.
Bp1 is the love child of tulameen and polka. Maybe go for that one later?
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Very interesting, never heard of this one! Description sounds good and it looks like one parent is resistant to the root rot. I’ll give it a try if I ever manage to get a hold of it.
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Yeah that is weird… i have mine growing on a mounded row and they are doing great.
Anyways the article you posted suggested this-
‘Grow raspberries on very welldrained soils and on raised beds or ridges (about 12 to 18 inches high) to promote drainage.’
I do agree that without that intervention most raspberries are sensitive to root rot.
Well so there is some story and life experiences behind it. Originally I just wanted Tulameen and went to Raintree (who are based in Western WA like me) to buy some. It was out of stock so I waited. After over a year of waiting, I reached out and they told me the crop failed and to try again later. After another year of waiting and it still being out of stock, I decided to take it as the sign from the above and embrace the radical approach of growing things adapted to grow in the given area.
That, and we also were hit hard by powdery mildew this year, which is not that uncommon, mushroom friends seem to like it here. It was my first year of observing my apple trees and it was amazing to watch how some trees were barely affected, while some were hammered so hard I thought they would die.
I reached out to Nourse Farms yesterday, they claim to be the only place licensed to sell BP-1 in the US. They replied to me and told me they no longer sell it. I’ll try to find it but I am not super optimistic.
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Whaaaat 
was hoping to grab one next year from them…
If you find it, let me know? I’ve been looking for it as well
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