Grass, a fence, and raspberries

VermontCathy

I have been trying to get a row of raspberries established along the inside of the garden fence. Most of the garden grows in raised beds with highly improved soil, but the raspberries grow in native soil just inside the fence.

The problem is the grass. It grows all around the raspberries, getting very tall. I cannot get the lawn mower close enough to the fence to mow the grass without destroying the raspberries too.

A weed whacker would cut the grass nicely right up to the fence line, but there would be a high risk of damaging the raspberries.

Getting rid of the grass permanently is not an option, because the lawn begins just outside the fence. It will be continually sending runners under the fence into the raspberry patch.

Mulch would likely help, but I don't have a good, cheap local source of anything but leaves and newspaper. My husband is not going to agree to a chip drop.

The only working approach I've found so far is to trim the grass by hand with scissors around the berries. I am not going to keep doing that.

Does anyone have suggestions?

SuperC

@VermontCathy Try planting oregano, thyme, and chives. Something that grows close to the ground. Place carpet samples around the bases the of the plants. The grass would die and the rainwater would get through as well as the sun. Or, Try growing the raspberries in containers and then when they are 8”-12” tall plant them, and the grass will not grow taller than the raspberries. Or, pull out the grass due to the competition of both raspberries and grass are both natural repropagation growing plants. Let us know which method you use that works successfully.

kbmbillups1

I have monkey grass growing under my blueberry bushes. I don't remember planting it but I must have. It has really grown and covers the ground under several of my plants so my husband doesn't have to cut the grass under them or weed eat.

Sometimes in the summer it can grow a little taller than I like it because I cant see if there are any snakes in it. I have a pair of handheld grass trimmers but you could use scissors since its like a pair of huge scissors to trim the monkey grass.