How to Prevent Orange Rust in Raspberry Plants

Orange rust is a plant disease that affects black and purple raspberries. There is no fungicide that can protect against orange rust, and once the disease has infected a plant, fungicide is completely ineffectual; the plant will not produce fruit and will spread the disease onto surrounding raspberry plants. Preventing the disease from ever reaching your raspberry plants is the only way to keep them healthy and growing strong throughout the seasons.

Things You'll Need

• Healthy raspberry plants
• Gardening gloves

Instructions

1. Plant only healthy raspberries in your garden. Orange rust cannot infect red raspberries, so these are always safe for your garden. When planting black or purple raspberries, learn the origin of the raspberry plant you choose to work with to ensure it has never been exposed to orange rust. Purchase plants only from reputable nurseries.

2. Being sure to wear your gardening gloves, check all raspberry plants thoroughly for any signs of orange rust, which can appear between the later half of May and the end of June. Signs of the disease include shriveled or yellowed leaves with bright orange spores on the underside of the leaves. These spores will shed and infect surrounding plants.

3. Remove and destroy any plants infected with orange rust. Uproot these plants completely and destroy them by wrapping them in plastic and burning or otherwise safely disposing of them. Remove plants with orange rust symptoms as soon as you see them, before any of the spores can burst and spread the disease to healthy plants.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are unsure about the health of a raspberry plant, consult a professional at a nursery or gardening store. Do not take risks regarding your raspberry plants; act as soon as you think there may be an orange rust infection. This is the only way to protect your healthy plants.

References

• Raspberry Disease
• Orange Rust Fact Sheet
• Managing Raspberry Plants