Raspberry
When you eat a raspberry it’s hard not to marvel at its delicate architecture—each raspberry has about a hundred little “drupelets,” or self-contained fleshy lobes with tiny seeds perfectly sized to get stuck in your teeth! Their mouth-watering sweet-tart taste isn’t quite as popular in jams and jellies as some other berries, but they are enjoyed around the world. Raspberries (there are many species in the genus Rubus) are genetically related to roses, which won’t come as a surprise to anyone who has brushed up against their prickly, woody canes. The most popular varieties are red, although black, golden, and even white (albino) berries are available.
Health Benefits
Raspberries have historically been used to treat inflammation of the digestive tract, gum disease, anemia, stomach ache, and fever. Tea made from the leaves has been used for centuries as a folk medicine to treat wounds, diarrhea, colic, and respiratory diseases.
Traditionally, midwives use raspberry to address menstrual concerns and to reduce the pain of labour. It alleviates morning sickness, may prevent miscarriage, and decreases postpartum bleeding. An early study shows that raspberry leaf may be safe for both mother and child. It is thought to tone the muscles of the uterus to help it function better during labour. (These effects take several weeks to accumulate in your body, so it won’t work to bring on labour if you are overdue.)
Labour and giving birth are a tremendous feat of endurance. What the body goes through during the hours it takes to bring a new life into the world is nothing short of a miracle. The physical stress and strain endured by the female body includes free radical damage (inflammation from oxidative stress in the muscle tissue). The powerful antioxidants in raspberries can help.
New evidence in the world of sports medicine suggests that endurance athletes—who face physical demands much like the marathon that mothers go through during labour—require significant antioxidant support after exercise. Raspberry extract can help meet that demand, too.
DIFFICULTY
Medium
HARDINESS
Perennial in zones 2 to 7 (depends on variety)
TIME TO PLANT
Spring
TIME TO HARVEST
Summer through early fall (depends on variety)
LOCATION
Full sun
SOIL TYPE
Rich, well-drained
Growing
Raspberries are delicious, and growing them in your garden sounds like a good idea. They’re fairly easy to grow, your kids love picking them, and you all love eating them. But there’s a big but! They take a lot of space, some varieties can be invasive, and they may require time-consuming pruning. Before you plant them, look for any patches of wild raspberries on fence rows, ditches, and vacant lots in your area. You may be able to harvest them for free!
Common Varieties: There are two main types of raspberries, summer-bearing and everbearing. Summer-bearing raspberries—as you probably figured out—yield their fruit in early summer only. Everbearing raspberries give you a crop in the summer and another in the fall. There are many cultivars of each type, with berries of various colours and sizes. I like the following:
• Summer-bearing red raspberry varieties: ‘Prelude’, ‘Boyne’, ‘Nova’, ‘Titan’, ‘Glen Ample’
• Everbearing red rasberry varieties: ‘Autumn Bliss’, ‘Caroline’, ‘Josephine’, ‘Polka’
• Black and purple raspberry varieties: ‘Jewel’, ‘Royalty’
• Yellow raspberry variety: ‘Fall Gold’
PLANT
Plant raspberries in spring—that’s when you’ll find the best selection at garden centres. (You can also plant them in early fall.) Look for large pots with several canes, and pay attention to whether the variety you are purchasing is summer-bearing or everbearing. This will not only tell you the time to harvest and the type of fruit, it will also guide your pruning practices.
Locate the plants in full sun, in well-drained soil rich in organic matter or compost.
GROW
Raspberries are not maintenance-free. They need regular weeding, occasional watering (at least 25 mm/1 inch per week), annual fertilizing, mulching, and inspection for bugs and disease. But the critical—and time-consuming—task is pruning. When and how to prune is determined by the type of raspberries you grow and the wood on which they produce their fruit.
Do you have a friend with raspberry plants? If you do, they will definitely have some to share! Raspberries tend to spread and should be divided annually to keep them in check. This is best done in early spring when the ground is workable and the plants are dormant. Divide using a sharp spade. Never fear; it’s hard to hurt a raspberry. Wrap root divisions in damp newspaper and plant where desired. Voilà, free raspberry plants!
Summer-bearing raspberries need to be pruned twice each year. In early spring the goal is to remove all weak canes (anything thinner than a pencil) and cut back any others damaged by heavy snow or that appear too tall or out of control (over 2 metres/6 feet). The second pruning happens after the harvest. Now the goal is to remove any canes that produced fruits this season, because summer-bearing raspberries produce fruit on old wood, or last year’s growth. The canes are biennial, so they will die off after bearing fruit.
Everbearing raspberries produce berries on new wood, so they require only one pruning per year. In late fall or late winter, just mow your everbearing raspberries to the ground! Since new wood is what you want, you can remove any and all old wood from last season.
Always remove any diseased canes and those growing in unwanted places or directions.
Finally, raspberries should be staked, since the canes grow tall and fast. When growing them in rows, support can be as easy as placing stakes and stringing lines outside of rows to keep the canes contained.
Freshly pruned summer-bearing raspberry canes in the spring.
HARVEST
It takes almost two growing seasons to get good raspberry yields. Harvest the berries immediately when they’re ripe: They will appear plump and come off canes easily. Berries that squish or fall from canes are overripe and will lack flavour.
Put on a pair of gloves and harvest berries after the morning dew has dried and the fruit is still cool from overnight temperatures. Never pick raspberries in the rain unless you want to eat them immediately!
The flowers can be harvested in mid-spring to early summer. For maximum potency, harvest raspberry leaves in spring or early summer, preferably in mid-morning after the dew has dried. Don’t defoliate entire canes: just remove leaves sporadically.
STORE
Wash raspberries only before eating. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 7 days. Remove rotten berries as soon as you see them. I say “eat ’em while they’re fresh,” but raspberries can also be frozen (place in a single layer on a baking tray, freeze, then transfer to resealable bags), preserved into jams or jellies, or made into wine.
The flowers should be used fresh. The leaves can be used fresh or dried on drying trays in a dry, warm location out of direct light (see “Drying Herbs at Home” on page 365).
Put It to Work
Hemorrhoids? Raspberry flower power!
Hemorrhoidal veins in the rectum are similar to varicose veins in the legs. When there is a long history of constipation, the pressure from bearing down fills the veins beyond their normal capacity, stretching them like overinflated balloons. Over time they become permanently dilated and can even hang out of the rectum and bleed, a chronic and often painful or itchy condition. There is a solution, however: raspberry flower paste.
1 cup freshly cut raspberry flowers (prior to fruit harvest)
½ cup olive oil
1 cup petroleum jelly
¼ cup shaved beeswax
Wash and strain the flower tops. Put them in a blender with the oil and blend on medium-low speed for 1 minute or until smooth. Pour into a resealable glass jar (like a Mason jar). Place wax paper over the jar and then tightly screw the lid on the jar to seal it. Set aside in a cool, dark place for 1 week.
After a week, cover the mouth of the jar with a coffee filter or cheesecloth and strain the liquid into a bowl (discard solids). This is your raspberry flower oil.
In a small heatproof bowl over a pot of boiling water (acting as a double boiler), melt the petroleum jelly. Add the flower oil and stir well. Add the beeswax and stir until combined.
Pour the mixture into a sterile glass jar with a tight-fitting lid and refrigerate. When the paste has cooled and hardened, use a tissue to apply it liberally to the affected area twice daily (in the morning and before bed). Store in a cool, dark place for up to 3 months.
Recovering after baby? Raspberry leaf tea!
You don’t need to be postpartum to enjoy the amazing health benefits of raspberry leaf tea. But if you are, this simple recipe is ideal! Raspberry leaves are high in tannins, which are water-soluble antioxidants that help protect your body from inflammation.
Place 1 teaspoon of chopped dried raspberry leaves or 3 teaspoons of chopped fresh raspberry leaves in a mug and add 1 cup of boiling water. Cover and steep for 2 hours for a full and robust infusion, then strain the tea into another mug.
You can drink 2 cups a day during the last two months of pregnancy—but don’t use this tea earlier in pregnancy (it could cause early contractions). Always check with your healthcare provider before taking raspberry tea during pregnancy, as you may experience complications.
Endurance training? Use raspberry syrup sport gel!
Nearly every sweet sport gel these days is made up of artificial colour and flavour, but not homemade raspberry syrup sport gel. This one is 100% natural and delicious. And it isn’t just pretty-looking; it’s packed with a huge antioxidant punch. You can find the capsules and tablets needed in this recipe in health food stores or specialty pharmacies.
2 lb fresh raspberries
4 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp sea salt
3 100-mg magnesium bisglycinate capsules
3 99-mg potassium tablets
¼ cup gum Arabic
In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine the raspberries and the water and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes. Using a spoon or ladle, skim the foam that rises to the top, but be careful not to crush the raspberries. After 30 minutes, the raspberries will have lost most of their colour, but the water should be deep pinkish-red.
Using a fine-mesh sieve, strain the raspberry liquid into another saucepan, being careful not to compress the remaining berries (if you attempt to extract more juice, your raspberry sport gel will be cloudy and may not set); discard the berry solids.
Add the sugar, salt, and the contents of the magnesium capsules to the raspberry juice. Using the back of a spoon or a mortar and pestle, crush the potassium tablets and add them to the pan, too. Add the gum Arabic and stir. Bring the mixture back to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, stirring frequently, for 10 minutes or until everything is completely dissolved and the mixture has thickened to a semi-thick gel. Cool completely.
This recipe makes enough for about 28 “gel packs” (in small resealable bags). Spoon about 3 tablespoons of the gel into each bag. Press out the air and seal. The packs should stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks or in the freezer for 6 months.
When you’re out on a run or heading to the gym, take one with you and eat it mid-workout to supply your body with the natural nutrients it needs to get through the intense training.
Fast Forward
Fast forward to the health food store to purchase Traditional Medicinals red raspberry leaf tea or equivalent. Follow the instructions on the label.
Cautions
Raspberries are considered very safe. Any adverse effects generally arise from contaminated fruits, which can cause gastrointestinal upset, vomiting, diarrhea, weight loss, fatigue, and fever. Always thoroughly wash raspberries as they may carry Norwalk-like viruses.
Avoid if you have an allergy to raspberries or other plants in the rose family (Rosaceae).
Don’t consume high amounts of raspberries if you are in early pregnancy. It’s a uterotonic; i.e., it will induce uterine contractions.