Evaluation of Raspberry Varieties

Classification

• Horticulturalists divide all raspberry varieties into two growing seasons, summer and fall. Summer-bearing raspberries are called floricane; fall-bearing are called primocane. Horticulturalists consider ever-bearing raspberries a weak primocane crop.

Time Frame

• Floricanes produce berries in the summer after their second year of growth. Primocanes produce fruit in autumn, on the first year of growth. Some primocanes go dormant after their first production year, only to bloom again in the summer; thus, these plants become floricanes.

Types

• Examples of common primocane raspberry varieties include: Anne, producing a yellow berry; Autumn Bliss and Autumn Britten, both early autumn producers; and Heritage, a rugged and high-yielding berry. Common primocane plants include: Boyne and Prelude, some of the earliest producers; Nova and Titan, very hardy plants; and Encore, producing sweet red berries.