Part of the Summer collection
Hardy Berries and Currants: Summer Field Notes
Field note · June 2026
purple gooseberry
purple gooseberry. unknown cultivar, the original bush is at least 30 years old and thriving in full shade. the one in this photo is a few years old, it's crazy vigorous. after a hard prune it flushed out with a heavy crop of fruit and large shoots for cuttings. gooseberry needs a stronger rooting hormone and more time than currants, here I'm using 8000ppm iba talc and I expect them to need 6-8 weeks to root. for comparison, established hinnomaki red has about 2" of shoot extension, I'll collect cuttings for the other gooseberries early next week.