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Washington State University Puyallup Research and Extension Center

WSU debuts flavorful, easy-to-harvest new raspberry, Cascade Premier

By Seth Truscott
College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences

Republished from WSU News

Raspberries growing on canes.
Early fruiting with good yield and flavor, firm fruit, good root rot tolerance, and machine harvestable, WSU’s newest raspberry cultivar is named Cascade Premier.

Bright, flavorful, and bred for easy automated harvest, Washington State University’s new red raspberry variety, “Cascade Premier,” is more than a decade in the making.

First crossed in 2007 from two WSU experimental varieties, and released to growers in 2018, the new variety has continually shown promise in its bounty, disease resistance and growing qualities.

Now in its debut year, Cascade Premier’s first full harvest is expected in summer 2021.

Of the 10 raspberry varieties that Puyallup-based small fruit breeder Patrick Moore has released in his 31 years at WSU, “this is one of the best,” he said.

“It’s unusual to get something that’s this flavorful, firm, colorful, easy releasing, and resistant to disease,” Moore added. “This one hits all the sweet spots.” » More …