Bush Fruits

Day 207: Last year, I did a lot of reading on the subject before taking the pruning shears to my currants (left) and gooseberries (right). Each requires a different method to produce the best crops. Apparently I did the job correctly, becaue both are loaded with flowers and, as you can see, some of the ovaries (the fruit) are already swelling. Currants bear most heavily on 2-3 year old wood, less on older stems. Old wood must be pruned out and half a dozen new non-bearing shoots should be preserved to bear the following year. Gooseberry stems, on the other hand, may be allowed to bear for three years before pruning out the old wood. New shoots should be thinned to 2-4 to maintain the bearing cycle. If you have trouble distinguishing the ages of the stems, you can code each year's growth with coloured surveyor's tape. Keep good records, and enjoy an abundance of "bush fruits" as jam and jelly.