This article is about the plant species Ribes uva-crispa, a shrub with edible fruit commonly referred to as Gooseberry. The berries are usually green, but different cultivars produce a range of yellow, red or white fruit. The flavour is usually tart but modern varieties tend to be sweeter. In a temperate climate forest garden, gooseberries perform excellently in the shrub layer since they are fairly shade tolerant.[1] Along with other Ribes spp. such as blackcurrants (R. nigrum) and redcurrants/whitecurrants (R. rubrum), some consider gooseberries to be the backbone of the shrub layer.[2] They are woodland plants in their natural state.[2]
Background Information
Taxonomy
Common names
Etymology
Varieties
- "Whinhan's Industry": especially shade tolerant and therefore more appropriate for forest gardens.[2]
History
Originally a woodland and hedgerow plant, the first selective breeding took place in the British Ilses in the 16th century, particularly by amatuer growers in the industrial midlands.[3] Traditionally, gooseberry was grown in orchards in the Fens (Eastern England).[2] Yearly gooseberry competions with awards for the largest gooseberry took place in Lancashire,[2] and still take place in some UK villages.[3] Since the creation of cultivated
Behaviour
Range
It is sometimes debated whether goosebrry is native to the UK, but it almost certainly is.[3] Some gooseberries growing in the wild do represent garden "escapes" which have been bird sown.[3]
Morphology
Single trunked, multistemmed deciduous shrub.[1] Mature height 1-1.5m and similar spread.
Leaves are 3 or 4 lobed and have blunt toothed margins.[3]
Flowers are green-white,[1] or green-red and drooping.[3]
Fruit are grape sized but more rounded.[3] They are usually hairy.[3] Bushes will crop for about 25 years.[1]
Growth Habit
Reproduction
Gooseberry is self fertile (one plant will fruit by itself).[1] Flowers in spring.[1] Flowering fairly resistant to frost.[1] Bee pollintated.[1]
Cultivation: Site Selection
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zone 5.[1]
Soil Type
Soil pH
Shade Preference
Full sun.[1]
Shade Tolerance
Tolerates quite a lot of shade.[1] Under shaded conditions it tends to be more "leggy", fruiting higher up.[1]
Aspect
Exposure
Cultivation: Techniques
Typically purchased from suppliers as bare-rooted or potted bushes. These are best planted in winter.[1]
Propagation
- Hardwood cuttings: take cuttings in late autumn and place them in outdoors nursery bed.[1]
Maintenance
Watering
Pruning
Problems
Harvest
In the wild, gooseberries can be found scattered in woods and hedgerows in most of Europe.[3] Wild gooseberries fruit from early July onwards.[3]
Acidic, green gooseberries can be harvested in May but they need to be cooked.[1]
For cultivated varieties, yield is about 4kg per year per bush under full sun conditions.[1] Yield is reduced in shade.[1]
Preservation
Fresh fruit will store for only 1-2 weeks.[1]
Uses
- Wine -- See: Household Cyclopedia, Wines and Ciders (1881)
- Jam -- Gooseberries are high in pectin and are useful to add to low pectin fruits which would otherwise not set easily when making jam.[4]
- Jelly
- Fruit leather -- pulp needs thickening.[1]
- Sauces
- Pies
- Can be bottled, pickled and served cooked with food.
Secondary uses:
- Bee plant[1]
Cooking
- Gooseberry Pie
- Gooseberry Fool, a traditional English desert.
- Fennel and Gooseberry sauce for mackerel.
Nutritional Values
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 Crawford, M (2016). Creating a Forest Garden: working with nature to grow edible crops. Green Books. ISBN 9781900322621.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Hart, R (2019). Forest gardening : rediscovering nature and community in a post industrial age. Green Books. ISBN 9781900322027.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9 Mabey, R (2012). Food For Free. HarperCollins. ISNB 9780007183036.
- ↑ Crawford, M; Aitken, C (2013) Food from your forest garden : How to harvest, cook and preserve your forest garden produce. Green Books. ISBN 9780857841124.