By Janparry56
North Yorkshire,
United Kingdom 
I have a problem with my raspberries, a beetle I think. Iy makes the leaves brown and dried up and the fruit is browning where the stalk is. It also dries the fruit at the top of the cane, before it plumps out.
I have taken off the said leaves and fruit and understand that I need to burn them.
How can i sterilise the soil for next years fruit not to be contaminated. I also have many other fruit ( berry bushes) where leaves are browning.
Advice would be very welcome. Thank you
16 Jul, 2015
Raspberry beetle eats into the fruit rather than the plants themselves. Raspberries need a lot of water and are gross feeders. We mulch ours very heavily with garden compost, when the soil is wet. Rather than sterilising the soil, perhaps you need to address the food and water issue.
Been a bad year in many places for fruit bushes, either too much rain and not enough sun or the other way round.
17 Jul, 2015