How to Prune Blueberries, Blackberries, and Raspberries for Healthier Harvests

Pruning your berry plants might feel intimidating—but it’s one of the most important ways you can ensure bigger yields, healthier growth, and better disease resistance in your food forest. Whether you're growing a few canes by the chicken coop or managing a whole berry patch, this guide will walk you through when and how to prune blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries—plus the difference in technique for each.

Let’s dig in.

Pruning Blueberries

Blueberries are slow-growing but long-lived shrubs that benefit from thoughtful pruning starting in their 3rd year. The goal is to remove weak growth and encourage strong fruiting wood.

✂️ When to Prune:

• Late winter to early spring, while still dormant, before buds swell.

• Blueberries fruit best on wood that’s 2–4 years old, so maintain a rotation!

🌿 How to Prune:

1. Remove dead, damaged, or diseased branches first.

2. Cut out any crossing or rubbing branches in the center to improve airflow.

3. Thin out older canes—anything more than 6 years old.

4. Leave 5–7 strong canes per bush.

Pruning Blackberries

Blackberries can be trailing or erect, and most varieties are biennial, meaning they fruit on second-year canes. Pruning helps prevent disease and supports juicy berry production.

✂️ When to Prune:

• Summer tip pruning: after new canes (primocanes) reach 3–4 feet tall

• Winter pruning: to thin out dead fruiting canes (floricanes)

🌿 How to Prune:

1. In summer, pinch or snip the top 1–2 inches of new canes to encourage lateral branches.

2. In winter, remove all canes that fruited last season at ground level.

3. Thin to 4–6 strong canes per plant, and shorten lateral branches to about 12–18 inches.

A well-pruned blackberry patch is easier to harvest from and more resistant to pests like cane borers.

Pruning Raspberries

Raspberries come in two main types—summer-bearing and everbearing (fall-bearing)—and each has its own pruning method.

✂️ When to Prune:

• Summer-bearing: prune in late winter

• Everbearing: prune either twice a year or once in winter, depending on the crop style you want

🌿 How to Prune:

For summer-bearing raspberries:

1. After harvest, cut fruiting canes (floricanes) to the ground.

2. In winter, thin out weak or crowded primocanes, keeping 4–6 of the strongest.

For everbearing raspberries (2 harvests):

• After fall harvest, cut back just the top portion of the cane that fruited.

• In late winter, remove any canes that fruited the summer before.

For one big fall harvest (simplified method):

• In late winter, cut all canes to the ground. You’ll only get a fall crop, but pruning is much simpler.

Final Tips for Pruning Success

• Always use clean, sharp pruners.

• Compost disease-free trimmings, or burn if infected.

• Label your plants to keep track of fruiting schedules and age.

Regular pruning doesn’t just increase yield—it also invites more airflow, sunlight, and healthy regeneration for seasons to come.