Nourse Farms is one of the best places I have found to get raspberries. When I ordered mine, they were large enough that I took root cuttings from many of them and got several more plants than I originally bought out of them. Raspberries dont need stems to grow, if you have a good 4" or larger section of root, if you plant it properly, it should grow. I planted 3 varieties 2 years ago and I got massive amounts of berries last summer. I got all fall bearing for ease of maintenance, you just cut them to the ground every fall and they regrow in the spring. I got Caroline, Anne and Polka after doing fairly extensive research into production studies conducted by Universities. I like all 3 but Anne are definitely less productive then the other two. Put them in a place where you can till around the outside of the rows and that will help keep them from spreading, I till in the fall and when plants come up in the spring, outside of the rows, they are fairly easy to pull up as they are already broken off from the root system below ground. Dont do a 'patch' as they will grow so dense, harvesting inside will be very difficult. Plan for rows no more than 24 inches wide and you will need a support system for the canes. If you just get give away raspberries, dont expect large or sweet berries, there has been a ton of improved varieties coming out in the last decade or two, and if you grab some from someones back yard, if they dont know what type they are, odds are you are getting some very substandard genetics. If I had to recommend one variety, for flat out production I would suggest Caroline. They will do better in sandy soil than clay, but its hard to keep raspberries from growing, seriously. If you can grow plants, raspberries should be easy to master. If starting out, I would amend your soil depending on its structure with sand and pelletized sulfur an some good composted manure. If it is low in organic material, wouldnt hurt to add some bales of peat too. Till everything in well and plant. It would be best to prepare your spot the fall before planting, to let your soil mature a little, especially if using manure that might be slightly hot or fresher. If you dont want to till around your plants, you can also use some sort of edging to contain them. I would consider using wood, preferably cedar because it will last longer with ground contact, but you could also use pine. Bury it so that its at least 4 inches under ground and it is angled slightly so that it pushes the runners to the surface, instead of deeper (then they would just grow under the barrier). This will keep most of the roots from escaping. I havent had problems tilling between my rows, but I do it every fall, it would probably be more difficult if you tried to do it less often. Keep in mind that fruit flies have spread to ND now and you will need to spray for them or else pick your berries often and slightly early.
