If you reckon gooseberries are toe- curlingly sour, it’s time to grow your own Sweet taste of summer
GOOSEBERRIES are among my favourite summer fruits, but the first one I ever ate almost put me off for life. It was spring, in the early 1980s, and I had just ignored my grandma’s advice to leave her gooseberry bushes alone. Ducking out of sight, I carefully reached between the barbed branches and plucked off a berry.
After making sure the coast was clear, I popped the globular fruit into my mouth and bit down until its tough skin burst open. The taste was so strong and sour that I scrunched up my face immediately. It probably took me a decade to pluck up enough courage to eat another fresh gooseberry.
Of course, what had happened is that I’d consumed an immature berry. A perfectly ripe dessert gooseberry is a taste sensation. The plump, almost translucent fruit has wafer-thin skin that melts like butter in the mouth to release its remarkably sweet, juicy flesh.
Sadly, the gooseberries sold in supermarkets during their short summer season tend to be a poor relation, both in looks and flavour. The only way to really enjoy gooseberries at their best is to grow your own. Bare- root plants are generally available from late November until early April.
Largely native to Europe and Asia, the first cultivated gooseberries arrived here in 1276, when King Edward I imported plants from France. Their small, hairy and acidic fruit didn’t appeal to the population, and it wasn’t until the introduction of better forms in the 16th Century that gooseberries became more widely grown.
By the early 1800s, the country was mad about gooseberries. Almost 400 varieties were available, with 170 clubs dedicated to growing the fruit. Members competed at shows to raise the heaviest berries, and reports of their deeds were published nationally in The Gooseberry Growers’ Register.
Today, more than 30 varieties are readily available in Britain, with fruit that ranges in size, shape and colour – apart from ubiquitous green berries, plants bear fruit in shades of yellow, pink, red and near- purple. The skin is often marked with paler-coloured veins.
Be careful when choosing varieties. Some are dessert types that are ideal for eating straight off the plant, while others have tart fruit that are best used in home cooking. Several varieties, especially those bred in recent times, are suitable for both eating fresh and turning into pies, jams and sauces.
Gooseberries are often grown as large, spreading bushes in open ground, especially on allotments, but the best way of raising them in the garden is as a lollipop-shaped half-standard, planted in a bed or border. If you have a tiny garden, you can set ready-trained forms within 12in pots filled with soilbased compost.
Gooseberries prefer slightly acidic to neutral, well-drained and fertile soil, but are capable of dealing with a wide range of soil conditions – a few varieties will even do well in unforgiving, heavy clay soil. A sunny spot is best for a bumper crop, although you will still have plenty of pickings from a plant in partial shade.
Fruit is ready for harvesting from late June until August, depending on variety. A few small, under-ripe berries can be picked in late spring for cooking, but leave most until they are large, plump and sweet – handle carefully as the swollen fruit bursts easily. Excess fruit can be put into polythene bags and frozen.
Gooseberry bush es can be affected by a number of pests and diseases. One of the most likely to crop up is American gooseberry mildew, a fungal disease that forms a white, powdery coating over the plant and distorts growth. The white bloom will eventually turn brown on fruit, and has a felt-like texture.
Apart from spoiling the fruit, the disease reduces the vigour of plants. Good cultural practices will help to reduce its impact. Clear up fallen foliage to prevent spores overwintering and keep the centre of the plant open by pruning in early spring to improve air flow, reducing humid conditions that
favour the disease.