The delicious little raspberries should not be missing in any home garden. Here is an overview of the best raspberry varieties.

In the home garden, taste plays the most important role in raspberry varieties

Raspberries (Rubus idaeus) from your own garden usually taste a lot better than the specimens from the supermarket. This is often not only due to the increased appreciation for products from their own cultivation and the freshness, but also to the varieties. While in commercial fruit growing special attention is often paid to shelf life and transport stability, taste plays the most important role in the home garden. To help you make the right choice for your raspberry variety, we have compiled our 50 favorite raspberry varieties for you here.

Raspberry varieties: The different types of raspberries

A general distinction is made between summer and autumn raspberry varieties. Both types have some advantages and disadvantages in terms of cultivation and taste, which is why it is often a good idea to plant some summer and some autumn raspberry varieties in the home garden. In this way, you can start in the raspberry season and continue snacking on raspberries from your own garden until autumn. With the increase in extreme weather events, you also have the security of being able to harvest at least once a year.

This is what distinguishes summer raspberries:

  • They ripen in summer and only bear fruit once a year on shoots that grew the year before.
  • Summer raspberries are often more productive and taste more intense.
  • They are more susceptible to diseases and pests.
  • Summer raspberries need a framework more often.

This is what characterizes autumn raspberries:

  • They do not require a cold stimulus, which means they can develop fruit on the (one-year-old) shoots formed in the same year.
  • Autumn raspberries bear fruit from August into autumn.
  • Because they are completely cut off once a year and ripen later, autumn raspberries are less susceptible to diseases and pests and also do not have "wormy" fruits.
  • For autumn raspberries, all shoots are on the ground after harvestcut off. Many novice gardeners find this style of pruning easier.
  • Autumn raspberries can be pruned in the same way as summer raspberries and then also bear fruit in summer. It's not possible the other way around.
  • For late-ripening varieties, it is advisable to protect the fruits from rain in a very rainy autumn.
  • The harvest of autumn raspberries often takes a little longer.
For autumn raspberries, all shoots on the ground are cut off after harvest

In addition to the autumn and summer raspberries, there are also so-called twotimer raspberries, i.e. hybrids of summer and autumn raspberries that bear fruit twice a year. Overall, these strains have the same yield expectancy as single-bearing strains. Rather, the difference is that half of their fruit ripens from June and the other half from August.

There are also other colored raspberries, such as yellow and black. In the following we will introduce you to the most popular and best as well as new and particularly disease-resistant raspberry varieties.

Red Summer Raspberry Varieties

The following raspberry varieties all fall under the category of summer raspberries, but still differ slightly in terms of harvest time. Therefore, they are also described as early, medium early or late maturing. However, late-ripening varieties are still earlier than autumn raspberries. The categorization as a summer raspberry is important mainly in relation to the cut. The following varieties are sorted by ripeness or harvest time:

'Willamette': Very early variety with high frost resistance; large fruits with good taste; strong growth; Very popular in commercial cultivation because the raspberries can be easily removed from the cone

'Elida': Early, robust variety with high yield; medium-sized, soft to medium-firm, bright red fruits; sweet, little aromatic, but juicy raspberries

'Malling Promise': Early variety with a rich, long-lasting harvest; large, tasty berries; vigorous; little susceptible to the rod disease

'Himboqueen': Medium early, very high-yielding variety with very large, very tasty, sweet fruits; strong growth; very sensitive to root death and viruses

'Preußen Auslese': old variety with excellent aroma; strong, upright growth; susceptible to cane disease - therefore only in locations where cane disease has never caused problems

Summer raspberries can be either early,be medium early or late

'Gradina': Medium early raspberry with high yield and good taste; soft fruit; strong-growing, strongly spined rods; well suited for unfavorable locations (dry, frost-prone, windy)

'Zefa 2': raspberry sensitive to late frost with sweet, aromatic fruits; dark red, medium firm berries

'Tulamagic': Also known as 'Fruatfri'; medium early ripening with partly additional, small harvest in autumn; very large fruits with good taste; very robust root system and tolerant to Phytophthora

'Malling Orion': Well-established, mid-early summer raspberry; medium-sized, heart-shaped, medium-firm to firm fruits with a sweet, aromatic taste; very resistant to mildew

'Prussia': Tried and tested, less susceptible raspberry with small, soft to medium-firm, moderately juicy fruits; sweet-sour taste; medium yield

'Proma': Medium early, robust variety with sweet, aromatic raspberries; soft, irregular fruits; high yield; frost hardy and very little susceptible to cane diseases

'Rusilva': Slightly sour fruits with a very good aroma of wild raspberries; high yield of light red, small to medium-sized, soft to medium-firm berries; somewhat susceptible to gray mold; resistant to raspberry aphid

'Meeker': Very aromatic, medium late raspberry with medium yield; frequently cultivated variety with high susceptibility to frost and drying out - therefore only recommended for sheltered locations; medium-sized, beautiful fruits with good keeping quality; strong growth of young shoots; disease resistant

'Tulameen': mid-late variety without thorns; very large, light red, relatively firm fruits with a good, sweet taste; Susceptible to Botrytis (grey mold) and cane disease as well as slightly susceptible to cane dieback and frost damage - therefore not recommended for rainy locations

'Glen Ample': Also a medium-late ripening raspberry without thorns on the canes; very large, firm, light red fruits; very good, sour taste and high yields; robust against gray mold; rather few young canes - therefore well suited for smaller gardens

The 'Tulameen' variety bears very large, light red, relatively firm fruits with a good, sweet taste

'Nootka': medium yield; instead large, very tasty, somewhat softer and quite dark fruits; strongly spined, medium-growing rods

'Glen Coe': thornless raspberry with dark purple, round fruits; goods,aromatic taste; high yield; good hardiness; little tendency to form runners, but vigorously growing rods

'Rubaca': Also known as 'Niniane'; medium late variety with a good, sweet and aromatic taste and high yield; medium-sized, rather soft, medium-juicy fruits; very robust and frost hardy; resistant to root diseases

'Himbostar': medium to late ripening, less disease-prone variety; good yield with sufficient rainfall or irrigation; bright red, medium-sized, sweet, very aromatic, medium-juicy berries; slightly susceptible to gray mold

'Schönemann': Late maturing; very large, elongated, firm and dark red fruits; good taste; very high yield; strong growth - therefore only suitable for large gardens; Susceptibility to root dieback

Tip: You may now be wondering when early, medium-late or late varieties ripen. That cannot be said with any certainty, because the time of ripening depends very much on how spring goes. In recent years, May has often been very summery, which is why the harvest tends to be pushed forward. In general, one can say that the earliest summer raspberries ripen at the end of May or beginning of June and the later summer varieties at the end of June to mid-July. The earliest autumn varieties such as 'Autumn Bliss' start to mature in late July to early August. The fruits of the later autumn raspberries are usually ripe towards the end of August.

Yellow Summer Raspberry Varieties

Yellow summer raspberries bear fruit just like the red summer raspberries on the two-year-old shoots. They are therefore cut like their red counterpart. There are differences in the color and sometimes also in the taste of the fruit.

'Yellow Antwerpen': One of the oldest known raspberry varieties; precocious; small, dark golden yellow, soft, aromatic, juicy berries; little sensitive to frost; very little susceptible to rod dieback

'Varnes': Medium early raspberry with relatively large orange-yellow fruits; sweet taste with good aroma; medium yield

'Golden Queen': medium-sized, round, very tasty, yellow-orange fruits; high-yield with a very long harvest period; relatively robust, he althy plant

'Fallgold': Late variety with large, aromatic, very sweet berries; wears a second time in autumn if the weather is good

The 'Fallgold' variety bears a second crop in good weather conditions in autumn

Red Autumn Raspberry Varieties

Also here arethe varieties are again sorted according to the time of ripening - from the earliest varieties from the end of July or early August to the late varieties, which begin to ripen at the end of August.

'Autumn Bliss': Earliest autumn raspberry, ripening for a long time from August; also called 'Blissy'; robust autumn variety very popular in Central Europe; cannot keep up with the taste of summer raspberries; very productive; dark red, large, medium-firm fruits

'Polka': Early variety; medium-sized, medium-firm fruits with good taste; fruits darken; very productive; moderate growth; somewhat susceptible to root rot

'Polana': Very productive, early variety with a long harvest period; medium-sized, medium-firm, juicy, sweet and sour fruits; slightly sensitive to rain

'Bohème': Early variety; medium-sized, soft fruits; medium, short-lasting yield; sour, moderately aromatic taste; low susceptibility to tail disease; Fruit sensitive to moisture

'Himbo-Top': Bright red, large, tasty berries; few, very vigorous shoots; requires scaffolding; robust against root rot; medium-firm fruits; medium to high yield

‘Autumn Bliss’ is the earliest of all autumn raspberries

'Holyoke': Mid-early to late variety with juicy, sweetish-aromatic fruits; medium yield; large, heart-shaped, medium-red, medium-firm fruits

'Basket Filler': Same as 'Holyoke', maturing around mid to late August; high yield; small, dark red, soft and juicy fruits; very good, aromatic taste compared to many other autumn raspberries; susceptible to gray mold

'Aroma Queen': Large, light red, medium-firm fruits; very good, sweet taste with a light forest raspberry aroma; high yield and long harvest time; fast-growing, but stable - therefore usually no scaffolding necessary; slightly more susceptible to disease than other autumn varieties

'Heritage': medium late variety with medium growth; very sweet, medium-sized fruits

'Fallred Strieb': Late; small, very tasty fruits; resistant to root rot

'Anna-Maria': Sweet, very aromatic raspberry; late, long-lasting harvest; firm, large and later medium-sized fruit; low susceptibility to rod diseases

Tip: In addition to the right variety, the supply of nutrients is also an important prerequisite for a successful raspberry harvest. Raspberries are best fertilized in early spring (March) and again before flowering (April/May). Thereforeideally use a primarily organic organic fertilizer with a long-term effect, such as our Plantura organic universal fertilizer. This is particularly gentle on the environment and provides your raspberries with long-term and sustainable nutrients through slow decomposition of the granules.

Yellow Autumn Raspberry Varieties

The yellow fruits of these varieties ripen from August, just like the berries of the red autumn raspberries. The yellow autumn raspberries are cut in the same way as all autumn raspberry varieties.

'Golden Bliss': maturing early to mid-August; strongly spined canes, medium to high yield; medium-sized to large, medium-firm, juicy, light yellow fruits; sweet-sour taste

'Golden Everest': Medium-early variety with striking yellow, large berries; sweet and very fragrant tasting; good frost hardiness and hardy

'Autumn Amber': Mid-late variety; Sturdy, thornless plant with large, medium-firm, apricot-colored fruits; sweet-sour, aromatic taste

One of the mid-early varieties is 'Golden Everest'

'Alpengold': Firm, yellow-apricot colored, large fruits with a good aroma; spineless rods

'Goldmarie': Well-established variety with large, orange-colored fruits; balanced sweet and sour taste

'Autumn Gold': Very aromatic raspberry, which, if pruned like summer raspberries, bears fruit in favorable weather conditions in July on biennial canes and in September on annuals; relatively small fruits

Black Raspberry Varieties

'Bristol': late summer variety; very vigorous - it therefore needs a framework and space; frost hardy; large, sweet fruits that are red at first but only really ripen when they are black

'Black Jewel': Late-bearing, robust summer raspberry with a high yield and a long harvest period; Plant is strongly reminiscent of blackberries and is very vigorous - it therefore needs some space around it; medium-sized, black fruits with a sweet taste

'Deep Purple': High-yielding variety with juicy, sweet berries; deep dark red to black fruits

'Roy alty': Mid-early to late, high-yielding summer raspberry with dark purple, soft and juicy fruits; sour taste with little aroma; strongly barbed rods; little sensitive to frost; relatively he althy, but slightly susceptible to gray mold

Black raspberry varieties are reminiscent of blackberries at first sight

Twotimer Raspberry Varieties

As already mentioned, the so-called Twotimer varieties bear twiceraspberries a year, once at the time of the summer raspberries on the two-year-old canes and in most cases once again in autumn on the one-year-old canes. What sounds like winning the lottery, however, has a catch: the nutrients and resources of each plant are limited. Therefore, the amount of crop that ripens on the summer and autumn raspberries over a few weeks is basically simply divided into two periods.

'Sugana': Best-known two-timer raspberry variety with a very reliable summer harvest; very large, light red fruits with good taste; low susceptibility to Phytophthora

'Isabel': Mid-early to late (mid to late August) ripening autumn variety, with another summer harvest possible; medium-high harvest; large, heart-shaped, medium-red, medium-firm fruits; sweet, fragrant and moderately juicy; susceptible to cane diseases and gray mold

'Resa': Early summer variety, bearing again in autumn; medium-sized to large, medium-firm, very sweet, juicy and medium-aromatic fruits; very susceptible to rod diseases; Sensitive to winter frost with high autumn harvest

If you are interested in other types of berries, we recommend our article here.

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