New raspberry not happy, help please

Dwrgi

Hello everyone, im hoping someone can give me some tips. 

About a month ago i bought a raspberry plant from a garden centre, i planted it the next day in a new fruit bed i had built.
The fruit bed had fresh compost (bought bags), and in order to get the depth i dug down into the topsoil. I literally followed the instructions from the garden center to the T.
But now the leaves are turning brown and falling off, im really confused as to why and how to get it to be happy again.
If it helps I have a blackcurrant plant next to it (abt 15cm away) and that's fine apart from the aphids (🤬).
Any suggestions? 

fidgetbones

Are you watering it regularly? The best time to plant raspberries is October to February, while they have no leaves, to allow them to grow adequate roots.  They prefer a sandy soil.

Dwrgi

I water every day if it has been hot, every other day if not. I give liquid feed every week, unless its raining.
I have a sensor in the soil that tells me if the soil is too dry (very handy). 
Im on sandy soil anyway (literally 2 inches of topsoil and you hit sand), hence the raised bed to grow fruit and veg. 
I had to dig down into the topsoil to get enough depth to plant it, and i added a few handfuls of compost to the bottom. 

I know i have an ants nest near by, would that affect it? Should I move it and put in a pot to give it a chance to revive? 

Lizzie27

That seems to be okay and ants shouldn't affect it. It may be the liquid feeding is too much so I should stop doing that immediately and see if that makes a difference. Plants don't need feeding when they're under stress.

purplerallim

Rather than liquid feed it might be helpful to add manure, as this will encourage root growth. You don't say which type of raspberry you have , summer or autumn,  which will make a big difference in how you care for it @Dwrgi

Dwrgi

Helo, this is the label for the raspberry, i always keep them next to the plant or i forget. No idea about summer/autumn fruiting.

Fairygirl

Glen Prosen is a summer variety so should be cut down in winter- they fruit on the new growth. They need a decent amount of room too, so the adjacent plant would need to be moved.

Constantly liquid feeding isn't a good idea. Good hearty soil that's well draining is the solution. 

Liriodendron

I think only canes which have fruited should be cut down (usually in autumn); summer fruiting raspberries produce their fruit for next year on canes which will already be growing now, and which need tying in to whatever form of support you're using.  It's the autumn fruiters (which yours isn't) which get cut to the ground in winter, and grow new shoots the following spring which flower & fruit all in that year.

However, that's probably not important for now... could you post a photo of the plant so we might be able to advise you better?

purplerallim

I am wondering @Dwrgi if the plant you bought canes are really last years canes, that would have already fruited , but they should have been cut off.🤔 If not all is not lost as feeding roots with manure should produce canes this year for next years fruit. Summer fruiting Raspberries newly bought don't always fruit in the first year.

raisingirl

It's possible they are last year's canes but they wouldn't usually die off, even so, they just produce very small fruit (I've forgotten to cut mine back quite often).
I think it's more likely that you're overfeeding it - they aren't greedy plants, particularly. I don't know whether too much feed would make the leaves fall, but it might, I suppose

Dwrgi

Hi, 
Here's a photo of the raspberry, i have borage that's flopped while watering (left on jet by mistake) and a spare sprout plant behind it. 
The flowers are french marigolds, and the blackcurrant is to the left out of frame. 
Im starting to think ill move it to a pot till I have a better spot for it. 
The garden is practically sunny alll day (weather permitting) and an old wash house shelters it on the right. 
Ignore the mess on the right please, in slowly filling the bed as i go along (bagged compost is so expensive).