INTENSIVE MANAGEMENT OF RED RASPBERRY IN EASTERN CANADA

The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of tipping, primocane suppression and three row treatments on the yield and berry weight of three red raspberry cultivars: Boyne, Comet and Skeena. The row treatments studied were stooling and row widths of 20 cm and 45 cm. The trial was established near Guelph, Ontario in 1983 and harvested for three seasons beginning in 1986. Skeena responded very poorly to Ontario conditions producing short, unproductive canes that suffered from winter die back each year. Maximum cane height was 1.4 m in this trial. Tipping caused yield reduction or had no significant effect on yield. Primocane suppression generally decreased yields. Stooling also decreased yields. In both cases the yield reduction could be attributed to a decreased number of canes in these plots.