How to Kill Weeds Around Raspberries

Weeds can overtake and choke out an otherwise healthy stand of raspberry canes. The weeds steal water and nutrients from the soil and from the raspberries, resulting in reduced growth and productiveness. New plantings are especially susceptible to weed competition, but even established raspberries can suffer. Weeds also house harmful pest or disease organisms that can spread to the raspberry plants. Proper control methods eliminate the weeds without damaging the shallow roots of your raspberry plants.

Hoe
Mulch

Instructions

- 1
  Break up the soil surface between each raspberry bush to uproot small weeds before they can establish. Use the blade of a hoe to disturb the top 2 inches of soil, taking care not to damage the raspberry roots or emerging new canes. Repeat every one to two weeks in the spring and summer months.
- 2
  Spread an 8- to 10-inch layer of straw mulch or dry grass clippings or a 4-inch layer of sawdust in the space between the raspberry rows. The mulch suppresses most weed growth.
- 3
  Use a 2-inch layer of mulch between the raspberry plants, leaving a one- to two-inch space between the mulch and the base of the raspberry canes. Avoid thick mulch around the base of the raspberries, as an overly thick mulch layer can also suppress new raspberry cane growth.
- 4
  Replenish the mulch layer each spring to maintain the necessary depth. Mulch decomposes into the soil, which benefits soil quality but necessitates periodic replacement.

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