Should I remove gooseberry bushes?

Roskerslake · July 2020

I have 3 gooseberry bushes grown from runners from a previous bush. The bushes look good and healthy but for 2 years in a row the crop starts out ok - lots of fruit- then goes brown. Having looked on here I can see it’s probably mildew. My question is should I remove the bushes and try elsewhere or can they be made to recover? I’m trying to avoid chemicals if at all possible would be very grateful for any advice

BobTheGardener · July 2020

Mildew appears when the microclimate around the bushes suit it, so you may be able to help by cultural methods, such as thinning-out the bushes so that more air can circulate, keeping the bases weeded and mulching to retain soil moisture etc. I radically pruned mine so that all of the branches now grow from the top of a 'leg' about 10 inches high, so the leaves and fruit are that much further from the ground and get much better air cirulation. Makes picking the fruit considerably easier, too.

Lizzie27 · July 2020

I grow mine as a double cordon on two 'U' shaped legs, then prune the laterals back to about 2" of the main trunks. Keeps a fairly open shape and as Bob says, far easier to pick.

Are you perhaps leaving them on too long. It's difficult to tell when gooseberries are ripe but you can start picking them when they're still young and green. I've picked most of mine this week.

Plashing · July 2020

I have found mildew will scrape and wash off,I know it takes time, we have a gooseberry bush exactly the same they have mildew on them and turn too that colour when they are ripe they are nice and sweet to eat raw once you have removed the mildew,and I am nearing eighty and my wife and are still here.

Should I remove gooseberry bushes?

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