Prepare raspberry canes for planting
Raspberries from the garden are my greatest summer treat and this is the ideal time to plant them, whether summer or autumn fruiting. It is always best to buy them as bare-root plants and they will arrive as stick-like canes with a mass of their fibrous roots.
Raspberries like plenty of moisture but hate being waterlogged and do best in free-draining, rather acidic conditions. So they should be planted quite shallowly and, if like me, you garden on clay, dig the ground well, adding plenty of organic material to aid drainage. I then spread the roots on the surface before mounding soil up over them so they are effectively planted on a ridge.
Once you see signs of new growth, the canes should be cut back to a couple of healthy leaves or buds to encourage strong root formation in their first year.