raspberry canes or suckers

can any body advise me on how to tell the difference between a cane and a sucker. As I understand it new plants can be raised from suckers,is this true? If so could anybody explain how to do this many thanks.

 

Summer fruiting varieties fruit on suckers produced last year.

So any canes that have fruit on are last years, the other ones are the suckers.

Autumn fruiting varieties fruit on this years suckers - so there is no difference.

 

thanks kristen. so canes are suckers and vice versa. so a new plant can be taken from any sucker is that correct.

 

I think some confusion comes from the terminology

Suckers are shoots which grow from the root of a plant. In some cases like roses or grafted plants these are not wanted and are removed.

With raspberries suckers become the new canes and bear fruit

Raspberry suckers which arise too far from the parent plant or in inconvenient places can be dug up in autumn and re-planted. The root attaching the sucker to the parent plant may need to be cut with secateurs or a sharp spade.

 

With summer fruiting varieties, you cut down and remove the canes that have just finished fruiting, which will be quite shortly for me. By that stage they will be scrawny and woody and quite unlike the lush new growth (suckers) that will become next year's canes. If you want to lift and divide this new growth then the best time is in the autumn, after the leaves have gone over.

Incidentally, last year I took advice heard on GQT that what raspberries really like is heavy mulching, and I can confirm that they really do respond well.