[Ben_H]

I have a small fruit patch in the garden which due to a young family, dogs, chickens and an allotment I am trying to keep as low maintenance as possible. What I would like to do is lay mypex weed matting around the fruit bushes and cover in woodchip as I have a real problem with nettles and other weeds growing through from under my neighbours fence.

If I do this how much space should I leave around the bottom of the raspberry bushes to allow for natural growth from the base of the plants and to be able to remove suckers?

[sunshineband]

I personally would not have membrane around the raspberries, but only the woodchip. They can come up a couple of feet or so away from the original plant, and although it is easy to remove unwanted ones, I reckon lots would get trapped 

[Ben_H]

That's fine by me as less mypex to buy. What about round gooseberries, red/black currants and blueberries?

[mumofstig]

I think they'd be fine with the membrane, as they don't sucker 

[operabunny]

Tell that to my red gooseberry! It clearly doesn't know the rules!

This is fine by me, though,  as I get free plants

[sarajane]

When I replanted my raspberries several years ago I surrounded the plantds with thick cardboard to stop the weeds, mainly bindweed and then covered with wood chips to hold the cardboard down.

The raspberries have multiplied so well they now need thinning out  again and the weeds have been minimal.

By the time the cardboard has deteriorated enough to let the plants spread the weeds have given up the ghost  Success I think

[sunshineband]

Tell that to my red gooseberry! It clearly doesn't know the rules!

This is fine by me, though,  as I get free plants

I've gained a gooseberry bush as it layered itself and rooted well 

Luckily it fould a spot where the thick layer of leaf mulch had exposed some nice damp soil