North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Ginda Fisher <list@ginda.us>]

On Feb 20, 2009, at 1:47 PM, fuwa fuwa usagi wrote:

> I grew Autumn Bliss and Autumn Britten, and Polana, Taylor, Fall  
> Gold, Anne, Hilton and gosh knows what else and they succumb over  
> time to the environmental pathogens.  Heritage is still going strong  
> having outlasted every variety I have planted.  I am not sure, but I  
> would guess mine are 12-14 years old.

I have a small stand of "Fall Red" everbearing raspberry in my  
backyard that is still going strong about 12 years since I planted  
it.  I had a couple of off years a few years back.  It was right after  
I spread ashes from my grill around the raspberries, but it might have  
just been a bad case of cane borer.  I have since learned to manage  
the cane borers (cut any affected canes as soon as I notice a problem)  
and either that or time has solved the problem.  It's not a difficult  
crop for me to grow - it's my most reliable crop, in fact.

I picked "Fall Red" over "Heritage" because I tasted both grown a  
couple of miles from me, and "Fall Red" tasted like a good raspberry,  
whereas "Heritage" had a slightly dry flavor.  I'm not sure how to  
describe it, but I've noticed it in purchased raspberries as well.   
Now, I love raspberries, and Heritage is tasty enough.  But "Fall  
Red", which is not known for outstanding flavor, is much better, to my  
palate, as grown in my location.  So I am also puzzled to see it  
touted as "the standard".  But maybe it is more widely adapted.

Ginda Fisher
eastern Mass, zone 6