Red gooseberry 'Hinnonmaki Red'

Sun

Full sun in cool climates; light afternoon shade where summers are hot.

Water

Keep evenly moist, especially during flowering and fruit swelling; avoid waterlogged soil.

Soil

Fertile, well-drained loam with plenty of organic matter; slightly acidic to neutral soil is ideal.

Height

3-5 ft (0.9-1.5 m)

Spread

3-5 ft (0.9-1.5 m)

Flowers

Small, inconspicuous greenish flowers, sometimes flushed pink, in spring.

Foliage

Small, rounded, deeply lobed green leaves on prickly stems; leaves fall in autumn.

Growth

Moderate

Care needed

Medium

• Pollinators
• Cold hardy
• Disease resistant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Edible

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1.6 ft (0.5 m)

2. After 1 year

   2.1 ft (0.64 m)

3. After 2 years

   2.6 ft (0.78 m)

4. After 3 years

   3 ft (0.92 m)

5. After 5 years

   4 ft (1.2 m)

   full size

About 5 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Safe

Growth rate

Moderate

• Water deeply during dry spells, particularly while fruit is swelling; container plants need more frequent checks.
• Apply compost and a modest dressing of balanced fruit fertiliser in early spring; avoid excessive nitrogen.
• Mulch with 2-3 in (5-8 cm) of compost or well-rotted organic matter, keeping it clear of the stem bases.
• Space bushes about 4-5 ft (1.2-1.5 m) apart for access and airflow.
• Use taut, wildlife-safe fruit netting as berries colour, checking it regularly for trapped animals.
• Before planting in the United States, check local Ribes restrictions related to white pine blister rust.

Pruning. In winter, remove dead, crossing and low trailing branches, then thin some of the oldest wood to maintain an open centre and a mix of young and mature stems. In summer, shorten nonessential side shoots to about five leaves without removing the main framework or replacement shoots.

Pick in early to midsummer, depending on climate; firm, partly coloured berries suit cooking, while fully red berries that yield slightly to gentle pressure are ready for fresh eating. Pick carefully around the thorns, and expect the first worthwhile crop about 2-3 years after planting.

Autumn

Plant dormant bushes once leaves have fallen, provided the soil is workable and not waterlogged.

Winter

Prune dormant bushes to open the centre and renew older branches; plant bare-root bushes during suitable weather.

Early spring

Feed lightly, replenish mulch and check emerging leaves for sawfly larvae.

Late spring

Keep soil moist as fruit sets and inspect leaf undersides for feeding larvae.

Summer

Protect colouring fruit from birds and harvest progressively as berries ripen.

Late summer

Shorten surplus side shoots and continue watering during dry weather.

• Plant in a dedicated berry bed with currants, leaving room to reach thorny branches.
• Train as a cordon along wires in a small kitchen garden to simplify picking and pruning.
• Use in a mixed edible border with low herbs at the front, keeping the bush base accessible.
• Grow in a large container on a sunny, cool patio where watering can be monitored.

Garden styles it suits: Cottage garden, Potager (kitchen garden), Edible landscape, Homestead, Backyard orchard and English country.

Plant it with: Redcurrant, Blackcurrant, Chives, Calendula and Wild strawberry.

Wildlife: Spring flowers provide nectar and pollen for bees. Birds eat ripe fruit, and the dense, thorny branches provide some shelter.

• Gooseberry sawfly: larvae can strip leaves rapidly; inspect from spring onward and hand-pick larvae, checking leaf undersides.
• American gooseberry mildew: resistance is good but not complete; keep the centre open, avoid excess nitrogen and remove infected shoot tips.
• Bird damage: protect ripening berries with securely supported, taut wildlife-safe netting.
• White pine blister rust: gooseberries can host this disease; follow local planting restrictions and seek local advice before planting near susceptible white pines.

Not known to be toxic to people, cats, dogs or horses; the ripe berries are edible. The sharp thorns can puncture skin, and eating large quantities of fruit may cause digestive upset.

• Redcurrant (Ribes rubrum)

  Redcurrants have thornless stems and long hanging strings of smaller berries; gooseberries bear larger fruits singly or in small groups.

• Blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum)

  Blackcurrants have thornless stems, strongly aromatic leaves when rubbed and clusters of black berries.

• Jostaberry (Ribes × nidigrolaria)

  Jostaberries are usually larger, more vigorous, thornless bushes with dark purple-black fruit rather than red gooseberries.

The botanical epithet uva-crispa means 'curled grape', while 'Hinnonmaki Red' refers to the cultivar's Finnish origin and red fruit.

Propagation. Take hardwood cuttings after leaf fall or layer a low branch into soil and detach it once well rooted. Seed-grown plants will not reliably retain this cultivar's fruit quality.

Accepted botanical name

Ribes uva-crispa

In the US and Canada

Introduced in Canada and the lower 48 states.

Native range

Albania, Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran and Italy.

Measured

Soil pH 5.5 to 6.5. Average height 100 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.