Planting raspberries in the wild.

[womble]

I really don't know about this.

I live near some woods, some forestry commission controlled, a mixture of pine and broadleaf, it's pretty extensive, I go walking there most days.
The other day I was on a bike ride with my daughter and I noticed a patch of red or black currants in the woods.

It got me thinking, I have all the raspberry cuttings at the end of the year, is it responsible of me to stick a stick in, here and there throughout the woods?

Would be nice for wildlife and I might even grab a fruit as I'm passing, if I'm really lucky.

I'm just not sure about it and would welcome your thoughts.

This should probably have gone in another section sorry

[bobleponge]

Hmmm, I have absolutely no scientific knowledge (those that know me would say no knowledge at all) but I'm never sure about releasing non ethnic species into areas.
I know just how much my rasp's spread every year, and how many roots I have to hack out to keep the things in check, so I would imagine they would spread like wildfire if left to their own devices.
Yummy for people walking through, and the birds, but non original species .... I dont think I would.

[smallblueplanet]

That'll be a big NO - do not introduce any species into the Countryside. It isn't necessarily a good thing and it may be a bad thing.

[womble]

OK, I thought it may be like that.

What about when birds eat the fruit and poo out the seeds then? That must go on alot.

[smallblueplanet]

Not much anyone can do about nature spreading stuff...

Think of all the alien (to this country) stuff that's damaging the native species - google hottentot fig - isn't it best to be on the safe side and not introduce a plant in the wild, who knows for sure the consequences...even native plants in the 'wrong' place can cause problems.

[womble]

Maybe it wasn't the best idea I've ever had

[smallblueplanet]

I think we've all thought oooh wouldn't it be good to have some more wildflowers, etc there...but I know from a colleague that it is not appreciated and is best left to 'planned landscaping'.

[Snadger]

So why is guerilla gardening ok for some plants but not for others? Not saying I don't agree with the sentiments expressed btw.

Raspberries being a natural woodland plant found in copious ammounts in my region, especially around old railway embankments, is it such a bad thing?

[binley100]

They grow like weeds on my lottie ..If they go on the rampage through the countryside they could end up with a bad reputation akin to something like japanese Knotweed . It's probably ok to do a bit of gorilla gardening with less invasive species.

[smallfrog]

Where do raspberries orginate from? We have some where i walk my dog and often feed them and blackberries to my ds.

Womble i'd say offer them to allotment people schools or failing that see if you can put a free ad up in a shop. I got given some when i got my allotment so hopefully i'll get some fruit this year. Or freecylcle come to think of it.

[Guttata]

Guerrilla gardening tend to be done on waste land and even areas of plain grass. It is technically illegal and they know this when they do it and accept that risk. Until we had permission in the area I live people who tried to pretty the place up by planting plants in beds they made themselves in the areas of grass told pull them up, re grass or face the consequences.

The woods in question are forestry commission land as such there are legal implications in doing this. It is not something I would wish to risk. Though Womble it might be worth asking if they would like the cuttings. You never know they may say yes.

The japanese knotweed for example has become such a problem is because of early gardeners of this type when they got fed up of the plants the grubbed them out and dumped them and now look what happened.

[womble]

I don't think raspberries are in the same league as Japanese knotweed, but I get your point.

It's not FC land btw, but it is managed by them.

Tbh, I can't see the difference between a massive thicket of blackberries, or a thicket of raspberries. They all get flattened every so often when they log.

It's an interesting debate. I wonder if you would get hybridisation, probably not, but it does happen once in a blue moon I believe.

Maybe I could "accidentally" drop a couple of raspberries I am eating when I'm out walking, yet that would surely be just as bad.

[Madasafish]

There are masses of wild rapsberries in some Scottish woodlands...