Surely you can hardly wait until the first raspberries are ripe and you can harvest them. How you can recognize fruits that are ready to harvest and what you should pay attention to when picking them.
What should you pay attention to when picking raspberries?
When picking raspberries, you should choose fruits that are ready to harvest, with plump pearls and a strong color. Pick carefully without applying pressure and wear gloves and long-sleeved clothing. Ideally, only harvest as many raspberries as you can consume or process on the same day.
Raspberry harvest time
The three main types of raspberries ripen at different times:
- Summer raspberries – June to July
- Autumn raspberries – August until the first frost
- Two-Timer – first harvest from June, second harvest from August
How do you recognize ripe raspberries?
Raspberries are really ripe when the fruit's pearls appear completely plump. Depending on the variety, their color is bright red, black or yellow.
Ripe raspberries can be removed from the inflorescence with just a light touch. If they are still stuck, it is better to wait a while before harvesting.
The best time of day to pick raspberries
If you want to eat raspberries raw immediately, pick them on a warm day when the sun is shining. They are especially sweet then.
Pick raspberries that are to be frozen in the early morning. Choose a day when it doesn't rain so that the fruit stays nice and dry.
Fruits from which you want to make compote or jam can be collected even in rainy weather. In this case, it's not so bad if the raspberries are a little moist.
How to pick correctly
Raspberries are picked individually from the bush. Using one hand, gently bend the canes to the side so you can pick the fruit with the other hand. Do not apply pressure to prevent the raspberries from becoming soft.
Carefully place the harvested fruits in a basket. Don't layer too many raspberries on top of each other.
Sort out maggot, rotten and moldy fruits straight away. Moldy raspberries infect the he althy fruits and cause them to rot more quickly.
Protect hands from injuries and discoloration
If you have to harvest a lot of raspberry bushes, wear gloves and long-sleeved clothing.
Many raspberry varieties have spines that cause nasty scratches on the skin. In addition, protective clothing will help you avoid being stung by insects such as bees or wasps. The hands don't turn red either.
Tips for abundant harvests
Raspberries cannot be stored for a long time. If possible, only harvest as much fruit as you can consume or process on the same day.
If the harvest is so abundant that you pick many more raspberries than you need, simply freeze the fruit.
You can defrost the frozen raspberries if you have more time and then easily make jam or compote.
Tips & Tricks
If you don't have time to cut the shoots immediately after harvesting summer raspberries, mark them with a colored ribbon. You will then be able to see exactly which rods are biennial and should definitely be cut.
