Gooseberries

Tonight, we picked our first gooseberries. We had a total of 10 berries but were excited to have those our first year. The berries taste is sweet mixed with a slight hint of tartness. Yum! It was the first time Mary had ever had one and she seemed pleasantly surprised with their taste.

Last year, I planted my first bush (a Hanoki Red) but almost lost it. The book said "full sun" so I planted it in the front flower bed. I forgot that gooseberries naturally grow in colder climates. This year, I transplanted it where it gets some afternoon shade and it is thriving. I also added my second bush which is a Poormans. The nice thing about gooseberries is they are self-fruitful which means they do not need another bush to pollinate it.

There are many uses for gooseberries. I originally tried to grow gooseberries here because I remember the gooseberry pies my Mom used to make when I was growing up. You can also make preserves or just eat them fresh off the bush.

One down side to gooseberries is the bushes have many small thorns. Cleaning the berries can also be time consuming as they have a small stem on both ends that has to be removed before eating them. The effort is well worth it though when you taste your first fresh one or the first pie out of the oven. Another positive is raw gooseberries are high in vitamin C and a 1 cup serving only has 66 calories and 6 grams of fiber.

As you consider different fruits to try in your landscaping consider gooseberries. You won't regret it. I'm sure looking forward to when my bushes are big enough I can make my first pie with the berries. It has been years since I have had fresh gooseberry pie.