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Telegraph article.
Growing soft fruit.

Introduction
I've got a big crush on gooseberries (Ribes uva-crispa).  On our allotment, we inherited an ancient bush of the sweet, dessert  type - variety unknown. The fruit is sensational. To eat, you crunch through the firm, thick skin, to release the sweet flesh.

Sadly, they have become unfashionable. It's unusual to find gooseberries in the shops. In the kitchen, their acidity is a brilliant foil for oily meats and fish. It takes moments to rustle up a gooseberry sauce for mackerel, for example.

Gooseberries, by the way, don't have to be green - you can grow berries with red, yellow and white hues too. They ripen early - most likely your first harvest of soft fruit.

Planting

Gooseberries will tolerate semi-shade, and does not enjoy prolonged hot weather. You buy two or three year-old plants from nurseries. When planting pull (not cut) any suckers at the bottom ten cm or so of the plant.

Spacing
1.5 metres either way.

Growing notes
The easiest form is the bush, but you can also train gooseberries into cordons (see pic below), half standards or fans - they are more finickety.

Mulch well in spring - remember to keep moist. Don't let them dry out in hot weather.

Plant and early, mid and late variety to extend your season.

In terms of pruning, treat redcurrants in the same way as gooseberries.

They are self-fertile and will last a decade or more.

If you have a heavy-cropping plant, it will help to thin the fruits when their first develop so that the remaining ripen fully. This is done in late spring.

Propagation is by hardwood cuttings in early autumn.

Containers
Not ideal, but possible. As with all soft fruit, gooseberries are far happier in the ground.

Pruning
With bush forms, the aim is to create a 'goblet' shape - with an open centre, so that air can circulate and the sun reach all the fruit. At the base of the plant, you want to create a strong leg. If you see suckers develop, then rip them off from the base (not cut).

To help promote this upright habit, prune leaders (the main leading shoots) to an upwards facing bug in winter and laterals to two buds.

Harvesting
You can pick culinary varieties early, but be patient with dessert varieties - you want them sweet.

Pests and disease
Birds. Powdery mildew.

Varieties
In the catalogues, be aware that 'culinary' varieties have the sharper taste. 'Dessert' varieties are sweeter. Invicta (green). Pax (red, almost spineless). Be aware that some have a drooping habit, meaning branches may touch the ground. Combat this by pruning to an upward facing bud.

Cooking
These prickly berries are a brilliant foil for oily fish. To make a simple sauce, melt butter then gently simmer a few handfuls of the fruit. When tender, stir in sugar to taste, season, then sieve if you’re fussy about pips.

Did You Know?
Goosebery shows were popular in northern England for centuries. But they declined in popularity from the 1920s. There is still one show each year in Egton Bridge, north Yorkshire - the first Tuesday in August. There used to be annual shows across Britain to find the biggest and best gooseberries, but these declined in popularity after the 

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