Rubus idaeus 'Valentina'

Delicious raspberries, Rubus idaeus, are very easy to grow. From just a few plants you'll be able to harvest bowlfuls of fruit from midsummer until mid-autumn. They can be eaten straight from the plant, used in jams, summer puddings, coulis and wine, and they also freeze well.

Raspberries can be grown in any size garden, as long as they have a fertile, well-drained soil and plenty of sunshine. Some varieties can even be grown in containers.

Most people grow summer-fruiting raspberries, which bear fruit from late June to August, on the previous year's growth. To prune, simply cut back all fruited stems to ground level after fruiting. Autumn-fruiting raspberries produce canes that flower and fruit the same year. Cut down all their canes in winter, allowing new canes to develop as a wide row the following year.