Gooseberry Update

It seems that our gooseberry transplanting went well, and the cuttings I took for propagation have been hanging out in the shade of our gazebo in this month-long drought and heat wave.  What gardener actually *sits* in a gazebo anyways, right?

 

Within a few days of starting these cuttings in soil, the plants started to look like they were dying as they began to wilt and drop their leaves.  I wasn't fooled - I've done this before.

The trick is to just let the plants adjust to the shock, and remember to water them daily to assure contact with the soil.  Soon, those that have managed to root will put out new growth.  My lavender, blueberry and hydrangea cuttings are also sitting under an improvised plastic cover to ensure high humidity, increasing their chances of successfully rooting. I haven't had any luck propagating blueberries before, but decided to give it another try this year.  After another week or so, I will give each successfully rooted gooseberry plant a separate container, and put them with my other potted plants that I've divided and propagated from the garden.  Next on the list is pruning and propagating the currant bushes.

Gooseberry Shuffle

We have planted quite a few berry bushes on our property, and over the years have dealt with several insect pests that create various problems for our harvests (aphids, I'm looking at you!)

This year, despite the promise of a huge gooseberry harvest, I lost out to (what I believe I have identified as) Currant Fruit Fly.  The life cycle of this pest involves laying eggs inside the emerging fruit, to grow, then cause the early spoilage of the fruit - which drops to the ground where they can pupate.  Sounds lovely, doesn't it? 

The infestation isn't 100%, but anyone who has harvested these berries from thorny, scratchy plants, and then spent time topping and tailing the fruit for baking or jam making can tell you that it's frustrating enough to throw in the towel at the sign of an obvious battle lost.  To mitigate the problem in the future, I pulled three of my plants and re-planted them far apart from one another in the front yard of our property.  This means that the remaining currant bushes (which are in the same family), have better air flow, and the ground around them is more open to the weather.

Before moving the plants, I harvested and destroyed the remaining fruit (oh, the waste!), and then took time to root some cuttings for future plantings, or to share with friends and neighbours. The ribes family are quite happy to put out roots, and I like to help them along with a little dash of rooting hormone, and a splash of homemade manure tea.