What are your favourite fruit bushes?

[SalviaOfficinalis]

I want to dedicate a small flower bed (3m) to growing soft fruit.

It’s south facing with a brick outhouse wall behind the flower bed. Clayish soil but not too wet as it’s in a partial rain shadow due to outhouse.

Hoping to fit 3 fruit bushes in. Recommendations for compact, preferably thornless, high yield fruit brushes would be much appreciated.

Thinking more raspberries/blackberries/hybrids rather than currants.

Thanks for all the helpful info re strawberry plants!

Give it a try for a season. People grow clematis in pots.

Could people give advice on how they cover their fruit bushes? I see a lot of complicated fruit cages on our allotments - I don’t have the money/capacity to do that this year, and my fruits bushes are small - what’s my cost effective/ useful alternative? Bamboos with net over them?

Yes I do bamboo Aron d the bushes, stick an upside down actimel pot on them ( to stop the bamboo ripping the netting) then green netting on top. Secure netting with bricks. It doesn’t have to be 100% covering all of the bushes. Birds do not like going near netting, they know then can get snarled up in it.

I put fruit bushes in raised beds on my small sunny allotment 3 years ago- well drained clay with a LOT of garden compost. I have a 2m x 1 m section with dwarf patio raspberries, as like you I have limited space - “ruby beauty”,”sweet little sister” and “yummy”. The don’t need support and fruited well although birds got a lot and I’ll need to put up nets this year. They look pretty. All equally tasty but flavour not as good as the taller varieties. All raspberries , even the patio ones, advance and send up runners so not really practical to share a bed with other fruit bushes. I would recommend where space is limited.
I got them from various sources including Ken Muir and T&m. I do remember the t&m were not the best but they were ok and survived and no different at this point between plants from 4 different
I had a dwarf thornless blackberry that promised height and spread of 1x1m but it took off and was 1.5 m x1.5 after 2 years .The berries are larger and earlier (July vs late August here) than the wild ones but as op said , not as tasty. Very decorative though. On balance, didn’t justify the space so moved it to a place where it can take its chances with bindweed and composting stuff.
I have early honey berries x 2 (Duet and-Atut ) very pretty but so far quite sour as they ripen before the weather really warms up at the end of May or early June. Need 2 varieties for pollination. Chilean guava berry “kapow “- really like these- evergreen and the berries are like a blackcurrant crossed with a strawberry. They are late so extra nice to have berries in October.

Yes, I could do that, I could buy an inexpensive very large plastic pot just to see how the plant does for one season. Thank you MereDintofPandiculation

I don’t net my fruit. I don’t have noticeable bird trouble with raspberries, loganberries, boysenberries, wild strawberries. They take all the redcurrants (a relic from previous owner so I’m not fussed) and a portion of the apples and mulberries.

DSis has loganberries that DF planted some years ago. They are bloody delicious