The Gooseberry plant is a small, stiff-stemmed plant native to Europe, and is often considered difficult to grow in temperate climates. Difficult, maybe, but most certainly not impossible! And it is certainly very rewarding.

 Plant description

The Gooseberry plant is a small, thorny plant that provides pink flowers during blossoming season. It can grow up to 1.5m (5 feet) tall, and has edible fruit. These fruit are ovular and green.

Finding seeds

It’s easiest to plant Gooseberries via cuttings, however, they can be bought from most gardening stores in colder climates. For more tropical areas, I’d advise checking online, as you may need to go to a more specialized nursery.

Planting

Gooseberries do best in slightly acidic soil – it’s best to plant them in constantly moist soil, although do be careful not to drown them or leave them completely dry. I would recommend turning over the soil before planting so as to get good aeration and water drainage. Plant the seeds 6mm (0.25 inches) deep, and 4-5m (13-16 feet) apart. If you wish, you can plant the seeds in smaller punnets closer together, and transplant them into an area with more space once they have germinated. If you’re working from a cutting, plant it 5cm (2 inches) deep.

Soaking the seeds in hot water for a little, then drying them before planting, should help increase the chances of germination. Plant these seeds between Autumn to early Spring.

Watering

It’s recommended you water these plants about once every 2-3 days, more if you live somewhere hot. However, I would recommend to always keep an eye on your plant for signs of wilting or overwatering, and adjust as needed.

Pollinating

Gooseberries are self-pollinating! So no stress if you don’t have bees or other pollinators nearby. These nifty little guys will handle themselves!

Stages of growth

In this aspect, regular Gooseberries are almost identical to Cape Gooseberries. Which in all honesty, is fascinating from a biology point of view.

There are roughly seven stages of growth when it comes to Cape Gooseberries. Germination, continued leaf and shoot development, reproductive development, flowering, fruit development, fruit maturation, and deterioration.

Germination takes roughly 2-6 weeks, and is characterized by the formation of new leaves poking through the soil. At this point, the Cape Gooseberry will have its first fragile roots!

The plants should grow and mature over the following 90-120 days. As stated prior, it is recommended you plant these plants at the start of the cold season, so that they have the time needed to grow and mature before producing fruit throughout Spring.

Knowing when they’re ripe

The easiest way to tell if a Gooseberry fruit is ripe is to gently hold it between your fingers – if it’s slightly soft, it should be ripe.

Harvesting seeds for next time

If you’ve ever saved cherry tomato seeds, then you’re already on the right track. If not, here’s some suggestions as to how to save Gooseberry seeds. It’s best to cut open the fruit and remove the seeds (warning, they are small), then place said seeds on a dry tissue or piece of paper towel. Leave the seeds to dry out. Once the seeds are fully dry, put them through a ‘winter cycle’ by leaving them in the fridge for a couple of days. Then remove them and put them in a paper bag or a new piece of paper towel, and they’ll all set to wait until you next plant Gooseberries!

What can you use Gooseberries in?

Gooseberries are much sweeter than Cape Gooseberries, however they are still tart. As such, they’re best to be used in jellies, sweet jams, and desserts such as pies. They can obviously also be eaten just as they are! Yellow and red Gooseberries are claimed to be a sweeter variety than the green, although all are good.

Happy Gardening!

Plant description

The Cape Gooseberry plant has purpley-green leaves that grow in bunches. The leaves are much like that of a common tomato. Cape Gooseberry fruits grow encased in a papery packaging, that goes from green to gold as the fruit ripens. Cape Gooseberry fruit itself also goes from green to red or yellow as it ripens.

Finding seeds

If you’ve collected seeds from your own Cape Gooseberry plants, you can of course use those. If you don’t, most major gardening stores tend to have Cape Gooseberry seed packets available. Specialised nursery’s may only be needed if you live in a truly cold climate where the plants aren’t expected to do well.

Planting

Cape Gooseberries are a warm season crop, so its best to plant them at the beginning of your cold season. Cape Gooseberries require well drained soil with lots of organic material – so its best to weed a section of your garden and turn over the dirt before planting.

Cape Gooseberry seeds do not need to be soaked before growing.

Cape Gooseberry seeds grow best if grown in punnets or smaller containers before transplanted into the garden or larger pots. Fill your punnet or pot with a seed-raining mix, and plant the seeds roughly 4mm (0.16 inches) deep. Try to keep the soil moist but never soaking wet or absolutely dry.

I would suggest spacing the plants 30-100cm apart (12-40 inches).

Note: Cape Gooseberries are sensitive to frost. If this is a problem in your area, please take measures against it.

Watering

When it comes to watering a Cape Gooseberry, like all plants, it can be rather dependant on the heat of the sun and rate of evaporation. For instance, where it’s mid-summer in a tropical area, you might want to water your Cape Gooseberry every few days. As a general rule however, once a week should do fine.

Pollinating

Cape Gooseberries are self-pollinating! So even if you have no bees in your area, you’ve no need to worry. These nifty little plants will handle themselves!

Stages of growth

There are roughly seven stages of growth when it comes to Cape Gooseberries. Germination, continued leaf and shoot development, reproductive development, flowering, fruit development, fruit maturation, and deterioration.

Germination takes roughly 2-6 weeks, and is characterised by the formation of new leaves poking through the soil. At this point, the Cape Gooseberry will have its first fragile roots!

The plants should grow and mature over the following 90-120 days. As stated prior, its recommended you plant these plants at the start of the cold season, so that they have the time needed to grow and mature before producing fruit throughout Spring.

Cape Gooseberries are self-pollinating but the flowers are yellow with dark drown inner patterns.

Knowing when the berries are ripe

It’s reasonably simple to tell if a Cape Gooseberry is ripe! The outer casing of the fruit tends to go from green to yellow as the fruit inside ripens. However, if you’re still unsure, you can always open the casing and have a look at the fruit inside – this will cause no harm to the fruit, just make it slightly more vulnerable to predators. The fruit, if ripe, should be a yellow or red colour. If it’s still green, leave it for a bit more time.

Harvesting seeds for next time

If you’ve ever saved cherry tomato seeds, then you’re already on the right track. If not, here’s some suggestions as to how to save Cape Gooseberry seeds. It’s best to cut open the fruit and remove the seeds (warning, they are small), then place said seeds on a dry tissue or piece of paper towel. Leave the seeds to dry out. Once the seeds are fully dry, put them through a ‘winter cycle’ by leaving them in the fridge for a couple of days. Then remove them and put them in a paper bag or a new piece of paper towel, and they’ll all set to wait until you next plant Cape Gooseberries!

What you can use Cape Gooseberries in?

Cape Gooseberries are a sour kind of fruit, and so are best to be used in salads, jams, and thick sauces. And of course, are perfectly delicious to eat fresh from the plant!

Happy gardening!

Finger lime (Citrus australasica)  

The Australian finger lime – an underrated, underappreciated fruit tree that can easily be grown in most gardens. These hardy little shrubs are native to Queensland and New South Wales, and can grow anywhere between 2-6 meters tall. This tree grows slowly, and I do have to warn you, it has thorns! But it also produces the most lovely tiny white or pale pink flowers, along with the finger limes themselves – which can come in a variety of colours such as green, yellow, black, brown, and purple. These lovely little trees tend to flower in late autumn to early summer, with fruit ripening in May to June.

After the harvest season is over, I would recommend pruning your finger lime back a bit, so it has time to recover the energy it put into fruiting.

Lilly Pilly (Syzygium smithii)  

The Lilly Pilly – have you ever seen such vibrant fruit? Coming in shades of pink and red, these wonderful natural berries make amazing jams. These trees are fast growing, and with their thick, luscious leaves they make a wonderful privacy barrier. If you want something smaller, just keep it pruned down to size!

Flowering in summer and fruiting in winter, this evergreen tree is drought tolerant and not too fussy about soil – making it very easy to care for!

Kakadu plum (Terminalia ferdinandiana)

The Kakadu plum – if you haven’t heard of it, I wouldn’t be surprised! These trees produce a tiny pear-shaped fruit known to contain the highest amount of vitamin c in the world. These fruits are native and can be found over large swaths of Australia. The fruit themselves are sour, with a stewed apple/pear scent to them. Like most plums, they contain only a single central seed.

In contrast, the leaves of the Kakadu plum are large and spaced apart. This tree grows between 4-10 meters, and has been a cultural bushfood for Aboriginal peoples for years.

Kangaroo apple (Solanum aviculare)

Kangaroo apple. I cannot think of a more Australian name. This little soft-wooded shrub is native to New Zealand and eastern Australia, and not only produces pretty flowers, but also small edible fruits that look remarkably like the centre of a boiled egg. These fruits come in a variety of orange to red, and are edible much like tomatoes.

Caution should be taken as the fruits are poisonous when unripe and green, so make sure to wait for coloration on your Kangeroo Apple.

These trees fruit in summer, and grow between 1-4 meters high, so perfect for a small garden!

In the past, these fruits have been used as an anti-inflammatory paste for joints!

Bolwarra (Eupomatia laurina)

The Bolwarra plant, or a native guava, is a plant native to Australia and New Guinea that grows between 3-5 meters tall. In fact, if you’ve ever had a guava, you should already have some idea of what this fruit may be like – the creamy pulp inside is edible and sweet, although it does contain many small seeds. This fruit can be used in drinks, jams, desserts, or eaten on its own. If you truly want to try something new, it can even be dried and crushed into a spice!

This low maintenance tree flowers in the spring and summer, and sets fruit in winter. It’s also been known to attract butterflies!

Blueberry ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus)

The Blueberry ash is a small plant native to eastern Australia, perfect for a small garden. These lovely native rainforest plants are low maintenance and have a high tolerance for pests and diseases. Plus, they have the most gorgeous flowers! The smaller varieties grow 4-5m, and are slender in width – perfect for a small corner. The Blueberry ash is variation of native quandong, meaning that not only are they drought resistant, but they also produce an edible fruit – an incredibly bright blue berry! These berries can be crushed and made into jams, or used as a tea.

And that’s all six! I hope this provides inspiration and insight into the amazing world of edible fruit our beautiful native plants can provide.

Happy gardening!