Vadelma "Polana" (Rubus idaeus) 0,5 l

• Origin: Poland (Research Institute of Horticulture, Skierniewice)
• Height: about 1.5 m, stiff canes
• Fruit: large, red, glossy, sweet and aromatic
• Fruiting: remontant: August until frost
• Yield: very high
• Light: sunny position
• Soil: fertile, humus-rich, slightly acidic (pH 5.5-6.5), moist but well-drained
• Hardiness: very high
• Spacing: about 50 cm in the row, about 2 m between rows
• Pot: 0.5 L

Planting. Plant raspberries in autumn or early spring in a sunny, sheltered spot. Space plants about 50 cm apart in the row and about 2 m between rows, in fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil with pH 5.5-6.5. Soak the pot before planting and set the plant at the same depth as in the pot.

Care. Keep the base weed-free and mulch with 5-7 cm of peat, sawdust or chipped bark. Tie canes to a support or wire so the fruit stays off the ground and thin surplus suckers for airflow.

Watering and feeding. Water regularly, especially during flowering and fruit set, but avoid waterlogging. Feed with a balanced fertiliser or compost in spring and a low-nitrogen feed after harvest so canes ripen before winter.

Winter and pruning. Polana fruits on current-year canes: in late autumn (or early spring) cut all canes to the ground. This reduces disease and pest pressure and increases yield (only the early summer crop on two-year canes is lost). The cultivar is very frost-hardy; a winter mulch is enough.