How to pick raspberries

3 min read

The most fragile thing you will pick, and the easiest to tell when it is ready.

What to look for

1
A ripe raspberry slides off its core and leaves the white plug behind on the plant. If the core comes with it, it was not ready
2
It should need almost no force at all. Any tugging means wait
3
Use two fingers and a thumb, and put it straight in the container rather than collecting a handful, which crushes the ones underneath
4
Keep the container shallow. Raspberries stacked deep turn to jam under their own weight
5
Fall-bearing varieties fruit again in September in much of the country, so a summer visit is often not the only one

Seasons are short and local. See which pick-your-own farms have raspberries on right now.