Washington Raspberry Plants

Types

• Summer-bearing, or June-bearing, raspberries produce fruit in June and July on canes that grew the previous year. Fall-fruiting, or everbearing, raspberries produce a crop on the top half of new canes from August through September, followed by a crop on the lower portion of those canes the following June and July.

Meeker

• Meeker, introduced by Washington State University in 1967, is the most common commercially grown variety in Washington state, according to the Washington Red Raspberry Commission. It is a summer-bearing variety that produces large, firm, flavorful berries in July. Once established, it develops resistance to root rot.

Tulameen

• Tulameen is a summer-bearing variety that has become the standard for fresh raspberries, according to the Washington Red Raspberry Commission. It's favored for its very large, firm berries with excellent flavor and long harvest season, up to 50 days in July and August.

Willamette

• Willamette, developed in Oregon in the 1940s, is an early June-bearing raspberry with modest crops of tart, dark-red berries during a short season. Willamette is adapted to Western Washington, but does not perform well in hot, arid sites in Eastern Washington. It is not as winter-hardy as other raspberries.

Cascade Delight

• Choose Cascade Delight if your garden is too moist for other raspberries to grow-- this 2003 variety is very resistant to root rot. Cascade Delight fruits about the same time as Tulameen, but produces a heavy crop of larger and firmer berries. Fruiting starts in July and can last a month or more.

Heritage

• Heritage fruits late in the fall -- usually after Sept. 1 -- and is the standard for everbearing raspberries. It has heavy crops of big berries with mild flavor, although often the fruit is produced too late in the season to be used. However, Heritage can survive winters in Eastern Washington if planted in sheltered areas.

Autumn Bliss

• Autumn Bliss is one of the first fall-fruiting raspberries. Its berries are firmer and bigger than Heritage, and ripen two or three weeks earlier. Fruit quality is best in August. Autumn Bliss produces short canes that need little support.

Summit

• Summit is a high-yielding raspberry with fruit ripening about the same time as Autumn Bliss. Like Autumn Bliss, Summit's fruit quality is best early in its season. Summit has high resistance to root rot.

Considerations

• Plant raspberries in well-drained soil to guard against root rot. Planting in mounds or raised rows is recommended. Raspberry crops can be smaller in areas of eastern Washington that experience hot summer temperatures. Protect plants from winter winds and temperatures below minus 2 degree Fahrenheit.