The Gooseberry Plant
Posted: Monday, September 21, 2009
by Dennis Sons
tn nursery
The gooseberry is a species of Ribes that is native to Europe, south western Asia and north western Africa . Gooseberry plants tend to thrive during the summer months but they can put up with wintry chills and grow in locations with cold temperatures as well. They usually bloom sometime around spring. These bushes produce a fruit which is edible and is grown for both domestic and commercial purposes.
This plant is in the form of a straggling bush, and can grow to be around one to three feet in height and about six feet wide. The branches are thick set with sharp spines. They stand out alone or diverge into tufts of three or four starting from the base of the lateral leaf shoots or the short spurs.
Flowers and fruits
This bush has bell-shaped flowers which are produced singly or in pairs. They emerge from groups of rounded, deep three or five lobed leaves. This plant produces a fruit that has countless tiny seeds inside it.
The colour of this fruit, or berry, will vary depending on the plant, but they are usually green. Sometimes they are white, yellow, pink, and purple, shades of red or almost black. The size of the berry also depends on the plant on which it is growing. Ripe berries almost always turn pink in colour and if they are over ripe, they will fall off the plant. It has a unique flavour that may not be quite to the taste of everyone.
Care Tips
These bushes are susceptible to attack by magpie moth caterpillars. When cultivating these plants, the best way to remove these caterpillars is to remove the larvae by hand as soon as they hatch. It lays eggs on fallen leaves of the bush so making sure you rake up the leaves before too long.
You can also use potassium sulphide, which is effective against blights and other parasitic growths such as mildew and caterpillars. Spraying them on the leaves of the bushes if you see any of these growths on them should help prevent them from spreading.
There aren't any diseases that will affect this plant. As long as they get plenty of sunlight they will thrive on their own without needing much attention from you.
Popularity
The gooseberry plant is loved by many homeowners, gardeners and cooks alike. It has multiple purposes. They are beautiful yard plants as long as you have space for it and can take adequate care of it. Always select a location that gets lots of sunlight because it thrives best in full sun.
In addition to this it produces a fruit that can be used in countless recipes. You can pick these berries in bulk without any worry because they freeze well. If you don't use all of them in one go you can just keep them stocked away for next time. You can freeze them regardless of whether they are cooked or uncooked and you can make jams and jellies out of them. Gooseberry also makes great toppings for ice creams and fruit salads.
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