1 Bucket Raspberry Bush + 7 Years = ?

The question ‘1 bucket raspberry bush + 7 years = ?’ is one to give serious thought to if you are considering planting raspberries. No, this is not one of those questions like ‘If a train leaves Boston at 8 AM, and travels 52 miles per hour, what time is it in St. Louis?’. Believe it or not, the answer to the raspberry question is 140 square feet.

Will your raspberry bush take over 140 square feet of real estate in 7 years? Double that or more in 14 years? It’s a pretty good guess that the answer is yes in a zone 5 garden. I’ll admit my scientific calculation was based on just one test case. Still, raspberries are known to be voracious growers, so I’m comfortable with the math. Lynn and Bob, my neighbors, can attest to that. They allowed their raspberry bush to travel, and travel it did. Maybe not at 52 miles per hour like the train leaving Boston, but at times I bet it felt like it. Theirs is the garden I based my math on, from bucket to 140 square feet in 7 years.

Like other invasive plants, in the right place, this is a good thing. For Lynn and Bob, it is a good thing. They have the room, and the family has a liking for raspberries. We have a liking for raspberries too. But I go to the store and pay a bunch of money for some that certainly aren’t as fresh as Lynn’s. For a few weeks a year, Lynn’s family can walk out their door for an all you can eat experience. The freshly picked raspberries don’t keep well, so they have to do their best to eat them shortly after picking. Worse things can happen to a family than that.

Excess inventory is frozen in 2 cup batches for Raspberry Lemon Muffins. She doesn’t even have to wash them first, as the raspberries really don’t like that. She can also share them with neighbors.

Said neighbor can then make a lovely dinner salad by combining the raspberries with other fruit, walnuts or pecans, turkey, and spring greens.

Hooray for neighbors with raspberry patches!

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