As more and more people move to cities, town houses, condos, and other places where gardening space is postage-stamp sized, the plants we grow must fit that lifestyle.

This means they must be small—or at least not unwieldy. And certainly they must play well with others. We’re looking for plants that are happy in a small space between the house and sidewalk, or in window boxes or containers on the back patio.

When it comes to veggies, we’re mostly all set with respect to greens, tomatoes, peppers, and such. They fit nicely in containers, no problem.

But what about those delightful berries you pluck from bushes?

Best Raspberry Shrub for Small Spaces

The vigorous and cumbersome growth that raspberry bushes can produce in a season can start war between community gardeners. I’ve seen it happen. Oh, and those thorns. It just gets messy.

This war of the raspberries might be stopped with a new variety called Raspberry Shortcake. It belongs to the new line of compact, edible berry shrubs called the BrazelBerries Collection.

Raspberry Shortcake is a thornless dwarf raspberry bush that grows just 2-3 feet tall and wide. It might be short, as its name implies, but it produces lots of regular-sized, sweet berries. Unlike other raspberry bushes, it’ll give you its first crop of berries its very first season—no waiting a year for your first berry harvest.

And being thornless, Raspberry Shortcake does fit the “plays well with others” requirement. Children won’t hurt themselves if they fall into it on the deck. How cool would it be for your 5-year-old to walk out to the patio to pluck fresh raspberries for her cereal? What a way to live.

Growing Raspberry Shortcake Bushes

Rather than the tall canes of the typical raspberry, the shorter, sturdy canes of Raspberry Shortcake have more of a mounding habit, so you won’t need to control the growth with staking or trellising.

The Raspberry Shortcake’s size is ideal for large pots placed on patios, balconies, and decks. And of course you can plant it directly in the ground in any size yard, but its compact stature is ideal for small spaces.

You’ll find Raspberry Shortcake in garden centers throughout USDA Hardiness Zones 5-7.