Lucy Goosey Gooseberry

I was always curious about the taste of gooseberries (ribes uva-crispa syn. ribes grossularia) but had never had the opportunity to try one. It seem financially irresponsible to buy a pie or a jar of jam of something that I wasn’t sure I’d like (and consequently have it go to waste.) Given that I have never seen it at any of the barbecues I have gone to over the years, I could only surmise it is not terribly popular as a fruit.

But I am experimental by nature, and in my journey to turning my backyard into an edible forest, would of course, come across gooseberries as a good choice. I already bought currants and found that it is very hardy where I am, and gooseberries are a closely related genus (close enough to cross breed into “jostaberries”) so I also bought a couple bushes.

Boy, am I glad I did. I wasn’t expecting much by way of fresh eating as since the currants, while labeled “good” for eating off the bush, were too tart and astringent to fully enjoy raw and served better in jams, the gooseberry cultivar I got, Hinnomaki Red, is deliciously sweet. The skin is a little thick (but I suspect all ribes species are) but quite good all the same.

It is hardy to zone 7 (and even colder) and fine with most types of soil. Sun or shade, it will live (although I think sun would sweeten the berries more), and survives transplants (as I had moved these poor things around several times trying to find the perfect spot for them) quite well. It’s drought tolerant, but does love a good watering.

This is the first year it has bore fruit for me, as the previous years it was trying it’s darndest to survive being uprooted and placed in new spots. I am expecting it to be quite productive in the coming years given the amount it grew this year (just a handful.)

I have another cultivar, Hinnomaki Yellow, but it has not produced yet and is still much smaller than these. Hopefully it will catch up soon!