It used to be popular to have gooseberry pie in the north on Grand National Day, but I suppose because of the quantity of sugar required the fruit became unpopular in the last great war and has never regained its popularity.
On the other hand, there still are special districts in East Sussex, like Newick and Chailey, where dessert gooseberries are grown in large quantities. Curiously enough, they pack their fruits in green bracken and these special packs are recognized in the London markets.
It is best to buy gooseberry bushes on a short stem or leg so that they stand well above the ground. This discourages suckers coming up from the roots and makes the bushes easier to pick and to manage. Further: when a bush has a leg 6-8 inches long, or more, it is possible to straw mulch underneath.
Pruning should therefore be delayed as late in the winter as possible because this makes it more difficult for the birds to get about among the bushes, while it may be necessary to interweave black cotton among the branches to keep these normal feathered friends away. In the case of the gooseberry varieties that are grown to produce berries for cooking, the pruning can be reduced considerably. Here, after four years of age, when the goblet-shaped branches have been formed, one need only carry out a certain amount of trimming so that picking can easily be done.
In small gardens, or where space is restricted in any way, there is no reason why gooseberries should not be trained as single or double cordons up a wall or fence, and then they should be planted at 2-21 feet apart. It is possible to have the bushes on a stem 4 feet high and thus they are well above the ground and are much easier to pick. A few people grow their gooseberries as fan-trained trees against a wall where they need a space of about 10 feet. Time to plant. Do the planting any time in the winter but preferably in November.
The normal gooseberry bush will be bought as a two-year-old bush. The cordons may be three years old, standard trees four years old and the fan-shaped types three years old also - 16035
On the other hand, there still are special districts in East Sussex, like Newick and Chailey, where dessert gooseberries are grown in large quantities. Curiously enough, they pack their fruits in green bracken and these special packs are recognized in the London markets.
It is best to buy gooseberry bushes on a short stem or leg so that they stand well above the ground. This discourages suckers coming up from the roots and makes the bushes easier to pick and to manage. Further: when a bush has a leg 6-8 inches long, or more, it is possible to straw mulch underneath.
Pruning should therefore be delayed as late in the winter as possible because this makes it more difficult for the birds to get about among the bushes, while it may be necessary to interweave black cotton among the branches to keep these normal feathered friends away. In the case of the gooseberry varieties that are grown to produce berries for cooking, the pruning can be reduced considerably. Here, after four years of age, when the goblet-shaped branches have been formed, one need only carry out a certain amount of trimming so that picking can easily be done.
In small gardens, or where space is restricted in any way, there is no reason why gooseberries should not be trained as single or double cordons up a wall or fence, and then they should be planted at 2-21 feet apart. It is possible to have the bushes on a stem 4 feet high and thus they are well above the ground and are much easier to pick. A few people grow their gooseberries as fan-trained trees against a wall where they need a space of about 10 feet. Time to plant. Do the planting any time in the winter but preferably in November.
The normal gooseberry bush will be bought as a two-year-old bush. The cordons may be three years old, standard trees four years old and the fan-shaped types three years old also - 16035
About the Author:
The garden gooseberry fruit tree is valueable for bottling, cooking and dessert uses.
