I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

In article , certos
writes
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Most types of gooseberries should be ready to pick by now - we have
cropped all of ours except for one later ripening bush which will be
ready in 3-4 weeks time. The berries begin to turn from bright green to
a yellowish or dull red colour, and they will feel softer as they ripen.
They also pull from the stem more easily. A better guide though is when
the birds begin to take them. If you see partly eaten berries on the
ground, pick the rest before you lose them. If you do happen to pick any
under-ripe, they will continue to ripen on indoors, though possibly with
slightly less flavour.
--
Alan & Joan Gould - North Lincs.

On Sat, 05 Jul 2003 23:31:18 GMT, certos wrote:

I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Ours are ripe. the criteria is to try eating one.

The Egton Bridge Gooseberry Contest/Show is on in a couple of weeks.
It's worth going to if you are in the area.

http://www.england-in-particular.info/yorkshire.html
"EGTON BRIDGE has a Gooseberry Contest on the first Tuesday in August.
The Egton Bridge Old Gooseberry Society celebrated its 200th
anniversary in 2001. The contest is won by the largest berry whether
of a white, green, yellow or red variety, although there are also
prizes for the largest berries in each class. Growing gooseberries for
show started in the 18th century in Lancashire, where workers' cottage
gardens were ideally situated. There were once 700 shows across the
country and 78 varieties of gooseberry, but the two World Wars
diminished the numbers. After the First World War, when often all the
men from a town or village went to fight, there were only 40 shows and
after the Second World War only 2, the other being in Holme Chapel,
Lancashire. The judging is from 9am-12.30 with the fruits on display
in the afternoon and music, prize giving and a raffle in the evening.
In order to take part in the annual contest you must be a paid up
member of the Society on Easter Tuesday of that year. Contact Mr
Preston, Chairman of the Egton Bridge Old Gooseberry Society on
+44(0)1947 810332."
--
martin

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In article , certos
writes
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Soon. Or maybe now, depending on where you are. Mine are easy to tell
because they are one of the varieties that goes reddish when ripe.

You could try picking one and tasting it to see if you think it is ripe
enough.

And if they start falling, then it's definitely time to pick quick!
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

In article , certos
writes
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Soon. Or maybe now, depending on where you are. Mine are easy to tell
because they are one of the varieties that goes reddish when ripe.

You could try picking one and tasting it to see if you think it is ripe
enough.

And if they start falling, then it's definitely time to pick quick!
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

In article , certos
writes
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Soon. Or maybe now, depending on where you are. Mine are easy to tell
because they are one of the varieties that goes reddish when ripe.

You could try picking one and tasting it to see if you think it is ripe
enough.

And if they start falling, then it's definitely time to pick quick!
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

In article , certos
writes
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Soon. Or maybe now, depending on where you are. Mine are easy to tell
because they are one of the varieties that goes reddish when ripe.

You could try picking one and tasting it to see if you think it is ripe
enough.

And if they start falling, then it's definitely time to pick quick!
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

"certos" wrote in message news
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Nice thing about gooseberries is you can start picking a few for cooking as soon as they're big enough - like 3 or 4 weeks ago and
keep picking as and when needed until they start being eaten by birds, probably a couple of weeks from now, at that stage dessert
varieties will be good to eat uncooked.

Rod

In article , Rod
writes

"certos" wrote in message newsinegvgt8r450ngpjfeg9g0kidk
a
...
I've got a gooseberry plant that has fruit on it. I have no idea on
how to tell when to pick it. Call me clueless I'm not a very good
gardener. do I pick it now or wait till Aug... Sept.... ????

Nice thing about gooseberries is you can start picking a few for cooking as
soon
as they're big enough - like 3 or 4 weeks ago and
keep picking as and when needed until they start being eaten by birds, probably
a couple of weeks from now, at that stage dessert
varieties will be good to eat uncooked.

Rod


I personally wouldn't recommend picking when still greenish and firm,
even if they're sizeable berries - I picked some from my bushes a bit
early this year and ended up with a bit of a stomach ache, even though
they'd been cooked for ages before being cooked again in a crumble! I
left them then until they were much paler in colour and plumper.

Lynda

The message
from Lynda Thornton contains these words:

I personally wouldn't recommend picking when still greenish and firm,
even if they're sizeable berries - I picked some from my bushes a bit
early this year and ended up with a bit of a stomach ache, even though
they'd been cooked for ages before being cooked again in a crumble!

Probably cooked beyond digestion :-) We had fresh gooseberry fool on
Sunday, made with firm green rinsed gooseberries cooked with a little
sugar for about 10 mins till they were soft enough to rub through a
seive; stir in thick custard and cream, and chill.

Janet.

The message
from Lynda Thornton contains these words:

I personally wouldn't recommend picking when still greenish and firm,
even if they're sizeable berries - I picked some from my bushes a bit
early this year and ended up with a bit of a stomach ache, even though
they'd been cooked for ages before being cooked again in a crumble!

Probably cooked beyond digestion :-) We had fresh gooseberry fool on
Sunday, made with firm green rinsed gooseberries cooked with a little
sugar for about 10 mins till they were soft enough to rub through a
seive; stir in thick custard and cream, and chill.

Janet.

The message
from Lynda Thornton contains these words:

I personally wouldn't recommend picking when still greenish and firm,
even if they're sizeable berries - I picked some from my bushes a bit
early this year and ended up with a bit of a stomach ache, even though
they'd been cooked for ages before being cooked again in a crumble!

Probably cooked beyond digestion :-) We had fresh gooseberry fool on
Sunday, made with firm green rinsed gooseberries cooked with a little
sugar for about 10 mins till they were soft enough to rub through a
seive; stir in thick custard and cream, and chill.

Janet.

In article , Janet Baraclough
writes
The message
from Lynda Thornton contains these words:

I personally wouldn't recommend picking when still greenish and firm,
even if they're sizeable berries - I picked some from my bushes a bit
early this year and ended up with a bit of a stomach ache, even though
they'd been cooked for ages before being cooked again in a crumble!

Probably cooked beyond digestion :-) We had fresh gooseberry fool on
Sunday, made with firm green rinsed gooseberries cooked with a little
sugar for about 10 mins till they were soft enough to rub through a
seive; stir in thick custard and cream, and chill.

Janet.

Well perhaps I have a sensitive tummy but I think green gooseberries are
quite well known for causing tummy aches! I didn't have a problem later
on with the riper berries and I ate quite large portions of them!!

Lynda

I can tell u when its too late after a rainstorm and they burst, still the wasps enjoy them.
murf