Andy’s Gooseberry Patch
Andy and I like to share our favorite Colorado destinations and activities with our friends Laurie and David. As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, one of our most favorite fall destinations to pick fruit (besides Palisade of course) is going to Happy Apple Farms located in Penrose, Colorado. One fall, several years ago we shared with them our fall excursion to the farm and later to the Abbey Winery for our annual wine tasting and picnic. Sadly, our timing was off on the orchard and apple picking, however, the Gooseberries were in season! We picked our share, the goal was to gather enough to make something, in my case jam, and continued on with the rest of our adventure.
Prior to this trip, I was unfamiliar with the Gooseberry. Since then, I’ve learned a bit about them through my favorite English gardener, Monty Don, plus doing some research of my own. Upon return from the adventure described above, I gave jam making a go with semi-success. The jam was tasty but a bit on the runny side. It didn’t work too well for toast, but it was perfect drizzled over warm brie! I’ve included the recipe at the end of this post. It must have tasted alright to Andy because he has requested, we grow a Gooseberry patch on our Boutique Farm. With the backstory on the Gooseberry complete, here is a bit of information on the berry and how to grow it.
Information by:
https://thisismygarden.com
Gooseberry Overview
The Gooseberry is an edible fruit that hovers between being tart to a sweet tart. It can grow as both a tree or a bush and is native to both Europe and North America. It has been cultivated by humans for over a hundred years. There are several named varieties of gooseberry, so it is important to choose one that is right for your area and preference. My plan for the farm is to grow the Gooseberry as a bush and include it with the other soft fruit patches (for example the strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries I’ve blogged about already). I think I might add table grapes to this area of the farm but more on that in a later blog entry. This post will focus on the Gooseberry bush.
As well as being tasty, gooseberries are nutritious, they are high in vitamin C, and are a good source of Vitamin B, Potassium and Manganese. Once established, the Gooseberry which is a perennial will produce for 10 to 15 years. Bushes will grow to a spread of 3 feet high and 3 feet wide on average, and handle pruning well. A mature shrub produces 10 quarts of berries or more per season. My plan is to plant two bushes as that should produce enough fruit for our family as well as to share with our Airbnb guests. Yes one of the main reasons for developing our Boutique farm is to share it with our guests and give them a farm to table experience!
Things to keep in mind when choosing your Gooseberry
Size – Gooseberry bushes are more easily manageable if grown no larger than 3-5 feet tall and 3-5 fee wide. If grown taller the branches will not be sturdy enough to support them and become floppy and unruly.
Pollination – Gooseberries are self-fertile and therefore do not require a different variety to pollinate them for fruit production.
Ripening Time – Gooseberries ripen starting in summer to early fall, depending on the variety and location.
Hardiness Zone – Most Gooseberries grow in zones 3 to 8 (unless otherwise noted).
Gooseberry Bush Varieties
There are many varieties to choose from, but here are two of the more popular choices:
Jahns Praigie Gooseberry Bush – hardy zones 3-9
Pixwell Gooseberry Plant – hardy zones 3-9
Both varieties can be purchased on Amazon. Jahns Prairie is a popular gooseberry choice and is hardy in zones three through nine.
Tips for Growing Gooseberry Bushes
Gooseberry shrubs will send shoots up through the soil and produce fruit up and down the stems. They perform best when planted with afternoon shade. This is important to keep in mind when you are mapping out where to locate your Gooseberry in the garden, or Boutique farm in my case. I’m thinking it might be a good idea to locate the raised Gooseberry bed near one of our hedgerows or fences for the purpose of shade.
Gooseberry bushes grow best in climates with cool winters and moderate summers. When planting, place plants where they will have shade from the hot afternoon sun, another reason to pair them with a hedgerow or fence. For best production, the bush location should receive either morning or evening sun. Partial shade is always better than a full sun location.
Gooseberries thrive best in loose, well-drained, fertile soil. It struggles in heavy soils. This means you will need to amend your soil if say it has a heavy clay base. For better drainage, you can add a bit of sand to the soil and compost to enhance the fertility of it. Good soil will allow for better root growth. When planting, set the new shrub deep in the soil, burying the first few inches of the plant below the soil line. If you are planting more than one bush, space them at least three feet apart. Dig the hole twice the width of the shrub and six to eight inches below the depth of the container. Add generous amounts of compost to the bottom of the hole before inserting the plant. By setting the plant deep in the hole and burying it a few inches below the top of the crown, the Gooseberry will create more offshoots and thus a bushier plant overall. You can prune and shape your Gooseberry bush after the first few years of growth. Pruning should be done when the shrub is dormant in late winter to early spring.
Growing Gooseberries in Containers
Although we will not be growing our Gooseberry bushes in containers, you can do it. To grow a Gooseberry in a pot you need a final container size of at least 10 gallons. Bushes will grow larger in a larger container, but make sure you have the ability and tools to move the pots heavy weight. For her garden, my mom has an upright dolly she used to move her plants in and out of her garage greenhouse. Andy and I will be investing in one for the farm. We made one to move our large pots in and out of the house, but it was not an upright and so was a bit hard on the back.
It is important for the establishment of the root system to gradually increase the size of the container over several years, rather than go from small directly to very large. Do not use soil from your garden in the pot, instead use a potting soil mix with some added compost. For larger pots use a potting mix that has larger particles in addition to the smaller.
Care and Maintenance of your Gooseberry Bush
Water
A general rule of thumb for plants in the ground is to ensure they receive an inch of water per week over the root zone. An inch of water is equivalent to about ¾ to one gallon per square foot of soil surface area. The typical three-foot diameter planting hole would need 7 ½ to 10 gallons of water per week provided by rainfall or by the gardener. Our plan for the farm is to install a drip system so we can both manager our water usage and make sure our plants are getting the correct amount of water each week.
Apply this water once a week, two times per week if soil is fast draining. This will depend on your own conditions and the plants you are growing! DO NOT water lightly each day because this results in a wet surface and dry root zone area. The soil should be moist but not soggy to a depth of about a foot for most growing plants. The top inch or two can feel dry, and the plant still be well watered. The trick is to have the water available where the roots are. In hotter and sunnier areas, a mulch of straw, bark, etc. can greatly ease the burden of summer watering. For plants in containers, water until the soil is saturated and water comes out of the drainage holes. Let the container dry until the soil is dry to the touch 1-2 inches down and the container is lighter in weight. Remember a plant that has wilted can be receiving either too much or too little water.
Fertilization
If your soil is not already rich in nutrients, you will want to add fertilizer to the mix. For best results use an all-purpose or balanced fertilizer. A couple of inches of well-rotted compost on the root zone can also be an effective fertilizer. A generous leaf or straw mulch around your plants will both conserve moisture and help in weed control; it also keeps your soil healthy by building up humus, attracting earthworms, and supporting beneficial fungal organisms. This encourages young bushes to be strong, healthy, and productive. Note: avoid applying fertilizer after early summer, as doing so can encourage lots of soft new growth that is much more likely to be damaged by winter cold. Excessive use of fertilizer is also not a good thing as it can increase disease problems or even kill them. As a general guide, if your plant is producing about one foot of new growth or more a year and has healthy looking foliage, it may not need much or any fertilizer.
Pests and Diseases
As with most plants, the Gooseberry is also susceptible to both pests and disease. Here are a few to keep an eye out for and ways to take care of these little beasties if the need should arise. If you’ve read any of my previous posts, you might see some familiar pests and diseases. As I’m new to this level of gardening/farming, I am discovering that these troublesome critters are not overly selective, what is the saying… any port in a storm? Once we have successfully relocated, I will have to ask our friends in the local farming community which pests and diseases are specific to our area!
Anthracnose Leaf Spot – Leaves get brown spots, turn yellow and fall off. If your Gooseberry comes down with this disease, apply copper fungicide in fall, winter and spring and prune out weak or injured wood.
White Pine Blister Rust – Leaves have extensive reddish colored blisters. To combat this, spray copper fungicide in fall before rains; repeat again in early spring.
Imported Currant Worm – Leaves will appear eaten, starting at the lower part of the bush and proceeding up and out. Small green caterpillars’ line chewed leaf edges. To combat these beasties, spray with pyrethrin or rotenone at first sight of these little green caterpillars. Search daily and destroy these little critters by hand. You can also cover the branches with floating row covers.
Currant Fruit Fly – This one is a gross one, the infested fruits are filled with tunneling maggots, the fruit ripens and falls prematurely. You will need a multi-prong attack to mitigate this pest. Spray with rotenone, Spinosad or bioneem when the fruit falls. Pick up and discard affected fruit. Protect the bush with floating row covers during fruiting but make sure you tie it so the pests can’t come up from below.
Deer – Deer tracks are present in the ground. Branches are shortened and the leaves have obviously been munched on; or plants have been completely pulled up. Your best line of defense for these hungry invadors are fences or cages at least eight feet tall, plastic mesh, electric or woven wire fences. If you have children or pets, I’d advise against the electric fence – I tripped over one on my grandparent’s farm as a kid and it scared the ever-living hell out of me (didn’t kill me though so that was a good thing!)
Birds – This is an easy one… you know you have birds if the fruits disappear! To dissuade these visitors, reflective bird scare tape works well as does bird netting or cages.
Vole/Mouse/Rabbits – Clues to these visitors are that the bark is eaten in a band from the soil level up to eight inches, roots may be eaten too. This usually occurs in snowy areas with lots of much or tall grasses at the base of the plant. Keep mulch four – six inches away from the base. Keep grass short and one – two feet from the base. You can also use a vinyl tree guard wrapped around the base until the plant is well established.
Mites – You know you have Mites if the leaves are stippled, and you have very small insects on the underside of the leaves. Webbing is also often present on the underside of leaves or surrounding the tips of new shoots. Control methods include insecticidal soap with ultra-light oil. You can spray with Pyrethrin or Rotenone, but the Mites may develop a resistance to it.
Aphids – 1/32 to 1/8” long pear-shaped insects that multiply rapidly, especially on the underside of leaves and on stems. Aphids can be pink, green, black, or white in color. Leaves show red blisters or are curled downward, and stems turn black with sooty mold. The best and most natural predators to combat Aphids are lady bugs! Parasitic wasps can also be used. Knock aphids off with water spray. You can also use Insecticidal soap, spray with Pyrethrin or Rotenone.
Ants – Numerous ants, scurrying up and down the base of the bush; aphids, scale or mealybug present in large numbers, lots of sticky honeydew and or sooty mold. To combat Ants, you first need to find the hill an apply pesticide. You can also apply Tangle Trap over a two – three-inch-wide band of paper and wrap it around the trunk of the bush; eliminate other pathways onto the shrub.
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug – symptoms of this pest include poking-type feeding damage followed by decay on berries and leaves. Deformity in the healthy tissue surrounding the dead tissue; brown spots can also show up in stored fruit. To address the Stink bug, you can use a broad-spectrum pesticide, set and monitor traps.
Spotted Wing Drosophila – These beasties deposit their eggs seven to ten days prior to the fruit ripening. Other symptoms include holes in fruit, spotty molding, larvae in fruit, exuding berry sap and scarring. To control this critter, you can set and monitor traps, or spray Spinosyn based insecticides.
Not wanting to end this blog post on such a buggy note, the following is the recipe I used to make my Gooseberry Jam. Once we have our own Gooseberry patch producing fruit, I will give this recipe another go so I can work on my consistency of the final product. Until then, I hope you enjoy it!
Gooseberry Jam
By Dienia B.
Prep time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes
Yields: 4 cups
Ingredients
2 lbs (7 ½ cups) Gooseberries
1 ¼ Cups water
5 Cups sugar
1 Lemon (juiced)
First remove and discard all the stems. Next, place the Gooseberries in a jam pan or wide saucepan. Add the water and cook over medium heat until Gooseberries are just tender (about 10 minutes).
Add sugar and lemon juice to the above mixture and keep stirring until the sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and bring this mixture to a boil. Continue to cook rapidly until setting point is reached, about 45 minutes. This is where I think my batch went south… I don’t think I did the full 45 minutes (patience is a virtue I’m still working on). So as the jam starts to set really pay attention to the consistency! Once you’ve reached your setting point, turn the stove off and ladle into warm sterilized jars and seal. Remember to also date and label the jar so you remember what is in the jar and just how old it is!
Bon Appetit!
