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Although it is commonly called gooseberry, the official name of the shrub is currant gooseberry and this fruit plant has over 1500 varieties, growing wild in Asia, Europe and Africa. You can read about its properties and nutritional values here https://.pl/agrest-bez-wartości ?, but in today’s article we have collected a handful of gooseberry curiosities for you. We invite you to read!
Gooseberry: for the nerves, eyes and digestion
Gooseberry is a very graceful fruit, which, despite its rather sour taste, works raw, straight from the bush, but also in the form of additives to cakes, desserts or preserves.Do you remember gooseberry jams? Delicious. And that’s not all – fans of this fruit are certainly amateurs of homemade tinctures. In turn, even less experienced cooks should be able to enjoy gooseberry jelly – this is due to the appropriate content of pectins.
The outstanding properties of gooseberries include:
- Diuretic effect – supports the urinary system thanks to its diuretic effect,
- improves memory and concentration, soothes the nerves – it is helped by the high content of B vitamins, which are important for our nervous system,
- helps with constipation – people who have problems with the digestive system will appreciate the high content of fiber – remember, however, that fiber can do its job, it is necessary to have an adequate supply of fluids,
- The lutein contained in gooseberries supports the work of the eyes – this carotenoid has a beneficial effect on eyesight and prevents macular degeneration.
This is quite a lot for a fruit with only 100 calories per 44 grams (about two handfuls). Nothing but use, right?
Own gooseberry – even in a pot on the balcony!
And although Poland has a very long tradition related to the production of gooseberries and for many years our country was one of the leading producers of this fruit, and the fruit itself has numerous health-promoting properties, for various reasons it does not enjoy special recognition or great popularity – it is not available in every supermarket, such as sweet American blueberry Since the availability varies, how can you benefit from its goodness? It’s best to invest in your own shrubs!
People with a private garden only have to make some free space for this purpose among the already developed beds, remembering that gooseberries like sunny places with slight shade, which allows the plants to avoid sunburn. The bushes grow up to 2 meters in height, so it is worth planting them in the garden closer to the fence so that they do not block the sun from other seedlings.
What can the inhabitants of the blocks that do not have access to land do? All you need is a balcony, a pot with slightly acidic soil (pH 5,5-6,5), a shrub bought directly from local gardening, a little sun and you can start growing! This is quite a realistic scenario, as long as we do not forget about typical gardening activities: pruning, watering and fertilizing.
| Gooseberry in the apartment? |
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| For a balcony, it is better to choose a slightly lower variety – Ribes uva-crispa giggles gold white gooseberry qualifies for this, growing up to a maximum of 70 cm. It is frost-resistant, even down to minus thirty degrees! |
When do we plant gooseberries?
The best possible date for planting gooseberries is fall, from late September to early November. When we plant gooseberries, it will depend on how our plant will behave. Autumn activities (along with the usual pruning right after putting into the ground) will allow the bush to have a while for better rooting, and at the same time its first fruiting will be possible in a year.
In care, it is very important when to trim the gooseberries (more on that in a moment) and to ensure that it has optimal hydration conditions. In many cases, when summer is not too dry, only rain provides adequate water. However, usually you will have to take care of watering, making sure not to overflow the plants. It just has to be “just right” 🙂
| Does the color of the pot matter? |
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| The soil in the black pots heats up faster and this has a direct effect on the evaporation of water. The gooseberries on the balcony will need a bit more care – especially during the hot weather in June, July and August. And as we mentioned, gooseberries will not be offended by a bit of shade. |
How to prune gooseberries?
Lest it be so easy, there is also a certain difficulty when growing gooseberries. The most demanding art is the trimming process. Here you have to show the true craftsmanship of the gardener. Poorly trimmed plant may stop bearing fruit and even die, while the lack of pruning will result in poor yields.
How to prune gooseberries? First of all, let’s pay attention to the fact that the older the plant, the more branched it is. All because new ones grow from the old ones – the fresh ones can be expected to yield better, so remove the older ones.
| When to cut gooseberries? |
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| Gooseberry trimming begins before the beginning of the entire vegetation process, i.e. at the end of winter: in February or March. |
However, do not get rid of all the shoots; the ideal situation is that after four years on the bush, we will have four shoots from each subsequent year. Sounds complicated? After getting into practice, it is not so scary, and remember – training makes perfect!
Gooseberry on a stump?
Red gooseberry can very often be found grafted on a trunk. Such seedlings, although they look very impressive after being cut in the form of a ball, are even three times more expensive than classic shrubs. In addition, while remaining in line with the zero waste idea, classic gooseberries can often be obtained even for half the price (literally a few zlotys) in off-season discount sales. Perhaps it will be necessary to fight a bit harder for the condition of the “bush”, because its seedlings are often dry.
One of the most important properties of gooseberries is frost resistance. Therefore, you can easily leave it on a plot or in a pot, without fear that it will collapse. The problem may arise when the gooseberries release their first buds, and these will be unexpectedly surprised by frosts. In such a situation, it can be expected that this year’s crop will be less harvested.
Chinese gooseberry?
The last garden curiosity is the so-called Chinese gooseberry. Contrary to the suggestive name, its largest crops are not in China (where it comes from), but in New Zealand. What is Chinese gooseberry? This is nothing but Chinese actinidia … Well, it still doesn’t sound familiar, right? So let’s use the most popular name: kiwi! An amazing source of vitamin C, recommended, for example, in the prevention of flu in the transitional seasons. Unfortunately, the trees (growing up to 25 meters!) Cannot stand frost, so growing Chinese gooseberries in Poland is rather unprofitable.
Gooseberry for weight loss and for diabetics
In addition to the health-promoting properties mentioned in the first paragraph, gooseberries are also associated with the ideal fruit for weight loss. Its rich taste, low calorific value and high fiber content make it definitely worth including in our menu.
What’s more, people with diabetes may also be interested in it, because the glycemic index of gooseberries is very low and amounts to exactly 15. This is an ideal argument to try your hand at making natural jelly, tasty compote or jam.
And pregnant gooseberries, is it indicated? It improves well-being due to the presence of magnesium and B vitamins. Why use artificial supplements when you can take advantage of nature’s gifts? The only thing to remember is to thoroughly wash the fruit and, above all, to clean it of dust and any earth residues.
Here is an exemplary gooseberry recipe straight from the Tasty Tailored diet menu:
Yoghurt dessert with gooseberry mousse a’la Delia Smith
Portion 206 kcal, ingredients: gooseberries 210 g (3 handfuls), natural yogurt 150 g, sugar 5 g (teaspoon).
1. Place the gooseberries on baking paper and sprinkle with sugar (use brown sugar). 2. Put the fruit in an oven preheated to 180 degrees for 20-30 minutes, until they become soft. 3. Put the fruit on a sieve and collect any excess juice in a bowl. 4. Mix 3/4 of the fruit with the juice to make a mousse and leave the rest for decoration. 5. Mix the yogurt with half of the gooseberry mousse and transfer to a cup or tall glass. 6. Put the rest of the mousse and the remaining fruit on top of the yoghurt.
How are your gooseberry memories? Do you also come back to your grandparents’ plot or to your garden? Or maybe you still have gooseberry bushes? Be sure to let me know in the comments!