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I've often been given advice (in blogs, books and verbally) that if you have planted a particular type of raspberry in a bed to not plant a different type. I've always been disappointed that it's not explained why this is an issue or how the problem is created, so I tried it this year and it turns out there 2 different, new, species in the raspberry bed failed. And the original is fine.

Does anyone know WHY and HOW this happens. All I currently have is proof the advice is correct, but I would like to know what occurs to make it so that new canes die in old raspberry beds?

DaveRGP
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    Never heard that advice and I've had two different types of raspberries in the same bed for years, with no problems. When you say this "failed", what do you mean? Did both varieties have a poor to non-existent harvest? Did one or both varieties get diseased (if so, which disease)? Are the "different types" two different varieties of, say, June-bearing, or one June-bearing and other ever-bearing? Were the environmental conditions (sun, soil and moisture) the same between the bed that failed and the bed that succeeded? – Jurp Oct 04 '21 at 16:03
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    Also, did I read correctly that this was the first year that you had both varieties in the same bed? Was that the case with the single-variety bed that was successful, or was that an older bed? If I read correctly, then a single-year's results from transplants really can't be called a "failed" experiment. I breed daylilies, and no daylily hybridizer will judge their seedlings after only a single year's performance; the same logic can be applied to fruit crops. You really won't know if your experiment succeeded or not until after Year 3 IMO. – Jurp Oct 04 '21 at 16:07
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    Finally, can you add links that discuss not planting two varieties together? I've looked and found no reputable sources that say that. Thanks! For example, this site contradicts that entirely: https://www.homesteadingtoday.com/threads/can-you-plant-yellow-and-red-raspberries-in-the-same-area.392954/ – Jurp Oct 04 '21 at 16:09
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    The only reason I can think of is that if you grow summer and autumn fruiting raspberries in the same bed they need pruning differently, and mixing them up will result in no crop next year. – alephzero Oct 04 '21 at 16:24
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    Good point, but if the gardener cuts the yellowing canes in Sept, then they won't screw up fruiting. This does require, though, some vigilance and knowledge to recognize fruiting canes. In my mixed bed, the June canes yellow while the everbearing canes are fruiting, so there are no issues, but this could be because f my Northern US climate. If the varieties are somewhat physically separated within the bed, then there should be no issues. – Jurp Oct 05 '21 at 12:48
  • Thanks for the discussion @Jurp and alephzero. The answer to a few of those is: * There was an existing set of canes that were a few years old (golden, summer fruiting) and red were added basically 'next to' the others * The red was planted as cut canes at the start of the season, they had buds set. The red just never set the buds. No mould issues, no watering or pest issues either. – DaveRGP May 26 '22 at 15:45

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Black raspberry gets anthracnose mold which can spread to red and yellow raspberry. U of IL recommended over 100 ft of separation. I have grown red (September) with a yellow together and had no problem. I grew black ( Bristol) over 100 ' from reds( Latham) with no problem for red; the black still get anthracnose.

blacksmith37
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    I've grown blackcaps both in the wild and "domesticated" and have never once experienced any fungal issues. This is probably an environmental issue (you've grown yours in a more humid environment would be my guess). For posters in the UK and in the US Pacific Northwest then, this could very well be the case because of their much rainier climate. In my area, though, there's no need to separate varieties. Because reds and yellows are essentially the same species, there should be no need to separate them, nor to separate different cultivars of the same "color". – Jurp Oct 05 '21 at 12:45