Planting gooseberries: time, location & Co.

Gooseberries taste very good and should therefore not be missing in any garden. Here you can find out the best way to plant gooseberries.

The gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa) belongs to the currant genus (Ribes), like its close relatives, the red ones and white currants (Ribes rubrum) and black currants (Ribes nigrum). The color and taste of the gooseberry fruits vary greatly from variety to variety. In contrast to strawberries (Fragaria x ananassa), raspberries (Rubus idaeus) and blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum ) they are often only offered for a short time in supermarkets. Since gooseberries are never harvested fully ripe for retail, otherwise they would become too soft for transport, the taste often lacks aroma and sweetness. Gooseberries thrive wonderfully in our home gardens and can produce very large yields on the bush. We give tips on planting gooseberries, the ideal time and how to plant them in tubs and beds.

Planting Gooseberries: Requirements

Before planting, you should first consider the choice of variety. There is a large variety of gooseberry varieties in red, green and yellow colors. They differ primarily in the taste of the fruit, the extent of the reinforcement with spines and the resistance to diseases. Cultivated forms with fewer spines make harvesting much easier. Because of the high susceptibility of gooseberries to powdery mildew, you should also use varieties that are as resistant as possible. The time of planting and the right location also play a crucial role in the success of growing gooseberries.

When do you plant gooseberries?

Hobby gardeners often wonder when to plant gooseberries, in autumn or in spring? The best time to plant gooseberries is in late autumn from October to November. By then the plants will have shed some leaves and go into hibernation. Now you can also use the winter moisture of the soil for growingand the soil can settle well until spring. The shrub does not put out fresh leaves until next spring, but the gooseberry plant has enough time to form new roots and anchor themselves in the ground. Some of the freshly planted gooseberries bear fruit for the first time the following year. If you missed planting in autumn, you can still plant gooseberries in early spring, before the plants start sprouting in April.

Tip: When planting in spring, make sure you have a good supply of water, as heat and drought can damage plants that have barely taken root.

The ideal location for gooseberries

Gooseberries prefer bright, sunny locations on nutrient-rich, humus-rich and loose soil that is good at storing moisture. If there is limited space in the garden, they can be planted between fruit trees or as a border hedge, because gooseberries thrive well enough even in semi-shade. The gooseberry is native to us and as a plant it is completely hardy. However, the flowers that appear in April to May are sensitive to frost. Therefore, locations protected from wind and cold are preferable for a rich harvest. If you do not want to take any risks in less than ideal locations, you should alternatively use late-flowering varieties. Dry southern locations, which often only warm up temporarily in spring, are less suitable for gooseberries than eastern or northern slopes.

Tip: Humid locations, especially those with shade and dew formation in the morning, promote powdery mildew and should be avoided.

The right soil for gooseberries

The optimal soil for gooseberries is not too light and not too heavy, rich in nutrients and permeable. The pH should be in the slightly acidic range between 6 and 7. These conditions are given on dark, humus-rich garden soil that is supplied with compost or other organic fertilizer. The root system of the gooseberry is sensitive to both waterlogging and drought. Very heavy soils can therefore be improved with one third each with sand and compost or a ready-mixed potting soil. Heavily sandy soils, on the other hand, also benefit from soil improvements. For example, water-storing clay minerals such as bentonite can be usedis worked into the ground with 1-4 kg per m².

There is often a lack of humus in sandy soils, so either compost should be added at 2-3 liters per m², or potting soil with a high content of organic matter, such as our Plantura organic universal soil. Always work the soil-improving materials extensively and deeply and not just in the planting hole, so that your soil will improve in the long term.
Soil that is already good enough can be improved with a dose of high-quality potting soil, thus making it easier for the gooseberries to grow . Of course, our Plantura organic universal soil is also suitable for growing gooseberries in pots and tubs.

Planting gooseberries: Instructions

In autumn tree nurseries offer their gooseberries either as container or root goods. The former sit in their own pot with soil, the latter in a field. The root product is dug up and sold without any soil or pot, this is also called "bare root". Both forms are equally suitable for transplanting in your own garden. Incidentally, two- to three-year-old gooseberry plants with strong roots can already bear the first fruits the following year.

Tip: Gooseberry stems must be permanently tied to a wooden stake because they cannot bear the weight of their crown and fruit themselves. Drive a third of the length of the wooden stake into the ground and tie the gooseberry well at three points: the stem, the grafting point and the leader of the crown.

Instructions - how to plant gooseberries:

1. Before planting, you should loosen the soil deeply and extensively with a digging fork or spade and then improve the soil with the measures mentioned above if necessary.
2. Now dig a sufficiently large planting hole for the berry plant. The planting distance for gooseberries is about 80 to 150 cm, depending on the variety and growth habit. Wide-growing bushes and tall stems require a little more space than closely spaced hedge plants.
3. Planting soil, the excavated soil and some mostly organic long-term fertilizer are mixed. The introduction of a slow-release fertiliser, such as our Plantura organic universal fertilizer or compost, ensures an optimal supply of nutrients during the growth phase in spring.
4. For bare-rooted plants, use pruning shears to cut all the roots by a fewinches back. This stimulates the formation of roots and the gooseberry quickly anchors itself in its new location. In the case of container goods, the roots of the pot ball should also be slit several times with pruning shears or a knife to stimulate branching.
5. In order to get a high-yielding and well-developed gooseberry bush, it is also necessary to cut the shoots. To do this, shorten the existing shoots by about a third, just above an outward-facing bud.
6. The plant is then placed in the hole, but it should not be so deep that the transition from root to shoot is buried under the ground. Now fill the planting hole with soil and step on the surface. Don't forget to water the new plant sufficiently. In the case of small trees, the support post is hammered in directly next to the root ball before filling.
7. A raised watering rim made of earth around the freshly planted gooseberry bush makes regular watering much easier.

Tip: A mulch layer of grass clippings, leaves or coarse compost avoids competition from weeds and retains moisture in the soil.

Planting gooseberries in the bucket

The tasty berries also thrive in large planters. Here, too, planting is best done in autumn. The pot or bucket should initially have a volume of at least 50 liters and have good drainage to effectively avoid waterlogging in the pot. Now fill your planter with nutrient-rich soil and put the gooseberries in it. Again, make sure that the plant is not lower than it was in the pot. Only the roots, but not the branches or the trunk, should be covered with soil. The incorporation of predominantly organic long-term fertilizer or mature compost is particularly important in the pot for a good supply of nutrients, as the supply is limited due to the smaller volume of soil. Press the soil down well around the roots and then water generously.

Tip: Gooseberries planted in pots are much more sensitive to frost. The soil can freeze through with the roots and let the plant die. It is therefore best to overwinter gooseberries in a tub in a frost-free, bright and cool place in the garden shed, shed or greenhouse. Alternatively you can cover your pot with an insulating layer of fleece or similarwrap to protect from frost.

Berry bushes often delight us with their delicious fruits for many years and decades. Nutrient supply is an important issue for a good yield and long-lived, he althy plants. You can find out everything about fertilizing gooseberries in our special article.