chrisj.doran wrote ...
Nitromax® wrote:
I have two gooseberry bushes that put on a decent growth
spurt this year. However, the caterpillars approved of the
new growth and during the course of just three days ate
pretty much all of it.

I picked off as many as I could but there were hundreds of
the buggers most of them rather small. A blast with the
hose pipe was the most effective method and finally got
rid of them.

Now I have two rather bare bushes, the only leaves left are
those from last years growth. Assuming I can keep the
caterpillars at bay next year, what are the chances of
the bushes recovering?

Would I be better off doing some hard pruning, leave it alone
or will the new growth come back?


They'll regrow their leaves next year. No need to do anything now. But
next year, keep an eye out for the caterpillars, and spray with a
suitable killer as soon as they appear, targeting the underside of the
leaves where they hide. If you don't like using chemicals, soapy water
(ex washing-up) may also work.

If I can tag on a question of my own: My books say that gooseberries
don't need pruning, but in recent years I've had a dramatic downturn
in quantity of fruit, with or without caterpillars, and the bushes are
straggling a bit. Does the panel thing that pruning would improve
yield, or at least not reduce it any more?

Always prune ours, if only to keep them in shape and make it easier to pick
the fruit. Usual stuff, removing damaged, crossed branches and old wood. I
also stop them making horizontal branches near the ground so any fruit is
kept off the soil.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
just W. of London