# Gooseberry?/Currant?/Neither?



## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

Found these on the farm today (southeastern MI). Could they be gooseberries or currants? Or something entirely different? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.


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## Ellendra (Jul 31, 2013)

Looks like a gooseberry to me.


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## Fennick (Apr 16, 2013)

That's a nice juicy looking gooseberry. Judging by the colour it looks like the berries might ripen to one of the pink or red varieties like this:








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## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

Thanks. So I pick them when they're red like in the above picture? I've never even seen a gooseberry in person so I don't know. Guess I'd better figure out what to do with them. There are only a couple of bushes so there aren't many berries.

Two more questions. Do they take well to transplanting? Right now they aren't in the best spot so I'd like to move them if it wouldn't kill them. Also, do they spread like raspberries or blackberries?


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## Fennick (Apr 16, 2013)

On ripeness / colour you'll have to play it by ear for this year since you don't know what cultivar it is or what colour it will be at its ripest. Taste one of the ripest most colourful looking ones now. If it bursts in your mouth with juiciness and sweet/sour flavour it's ready to harvest. If it's still very firm with a bitter/sour flavour it isn't ripe enough yet, so allow the berries to ripen and colour up a bit longer. If they start to get a bit wrinkled or mushy they are past their prime but still edible. Gooseberries make wonderful jams, jellies, compotes, sauces, chutneys, pies, juices, ciders and wines. 

Yes, they can be transplanted but it's too late in the year to transplant now since it's fruiting now and transplanting between now and spring may be way too much of a shock for them. The best time to transplant is in very early spring before they start flowering and fully leafing out and that gives the plants and their roots a better chance to become well established in their new environment. Transplant to a location that gets as much sun as possible. They will grow in partial shade but do much better in full sun. Make sure when you dig them up that you take up good sized rootballs to minimize damage to the roots. Don't expect a bumper crop from them the same year that you transplant, it will take a year for them to adjust and become well established and "happy" in their new location then the following year they'll put on a growth spurt and better production. The first year of transplant is a good time for pruning and shaping the plants' branches to take fullest advantage of sun exposure. 

Gooseberries will get bigger and can spread out and turn into large thickets in ideal conditions. Watch out for bristly spines, your cultivar might have them. 

Since you are in a northern state here is a website with some helpful information for northern gardeners for growing gooseberries, currants and jostaberries in northern climates.

http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/yard-garden/fruit/currants-and-gooseberries-in-the-home-garden/


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## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

Thanks! I'm excited to discover a new fruit.


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## CountryCabin (Mar 8, 2007)

SLFarmMI

If you want more then one Gooseberry plant ..do this.

This year you can pull down a branch (leaving it attached to mother plant) and cover a section with soil. I put a small rock over it to hold branch down without it breaking the branch.

That will root and come spring you should have a new plant. 
Before taking it off from main plant, give it a wee tug to make sure it has rooted. Then if rooted, snip off and plant else where. 
They are fairly quick to root. 
You can do more then one branch from the mother plant if you want and/or if your plant is big enough.

Happy growing!


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## oneraddad (Jul 20, 2010)

My buddy propagated a few Gooseberries the same way and gave me one. So I did it myself and plan to have a couple more soon.


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## frogmammy (Dec 8, 2004)

Oh man! Gooseberry pie! *SO* hard to find!

Mon


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## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

frogmammy said:


> Oh man! Gooseberry pie! *SO* hard to find!
> 
> Mon


Not sure there are enough for a pie but that's what I'm shooting for.


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## Ronney (Nov 26, 2004)

You lucky person. I live too far north (in NZ) for them to grow here but remember them well from my childhood when the family lived at the bottom of the South Island. And red and black currents which also don't grow in the north. 

Enjoy - and propagate a few more bushes by the method above - my father doubled our gooseberry bushes in this manner.

Cheers,
Ronnie


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## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

So I picked some today, only about a handful (Darn birds got the rest I think. Or the resident groundhog.). They seemed to taste like a combination of grapes and blueberries with the texture more like a blueberry. Does that seem about right to those of you who have had them before? Or did I pick them too late?


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## Fennick (Apr 16, 2013)

That sounds about right to me. I hope you liked the flavour.


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## SLFarmMI (Feb 21, 2013)

Fennick said:


> That sounds about right to me. I hope you liked the flavour.


Loved them! The only problem was that I had the share the handful I picked with my mother (she had them last when she was a teenager so I gave her some as a blast from the past). I'm going to try to get them to spread so I can have more next year.

Thanks for your help.


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