Planting and caring for gooseberries in the open ground in spring

Brief description of gooseberries

The height of the bush is 1-1.3 meters. The bark is dark gray or dark brown and peels off. The branches are covered with thorns. The leaves are light green, pubescent, oval-ovate or rounded. The buds are brown.

The flowers are light green with a hint of red. The plant blooms in May.

Seedling

The fruits ripen in June-July, in some varieties in the second half of August. A ripe berry is light green, reddish, bright red or even burgundy, again depending on the variety. Gooseberries belong to the Currant genus.

Why do you need to fertilize gooseberries?

Feeding helps the plant recover faster after winter.

How to propagate gooseberries in spring, summer and autumn

And also feeding:

• accelerates the growth of seedlings;
• improves the taste of berries;
• increases productivity.

Additional nutrients will help the plant cope with diseases and pests.

What happens if you fertilize at the wrong time or beyond the norm?

Gooseberry feeding is carried out in three stages - in early spring (several times), in summer and last time - in autumn. Gooseberries begin to develop very early, so the bushes are fertilized long before flowering, even at the time of bud formation.

Important! Fertilize the plant with extreme caution in summer. If the time for this is chosen incorrectly, the ripened berries will be sour.

To prevent this from happening, fertilizers are applied at the initial stage of berry formation. If this period has passed, then the fertilizers are abandoned.

The same applies to fertilizing bushes above the norm, especially in the fall. Uncontrolled feeding will not allow the plant to go into winter dormancy, which can cause it to die.

Weeding and loosening the soil

Thorough weeding of the bushes seems to be no less important than other measures. The operation allows you to saturate the root system with oxygen and receive the necessary amount of water and nutrition.

The soil is fluffed up after weeds are removed. However, the technique is performed with special care, due to the location of the plant’s roots near the surface. Failure to comply with the rule may lead to the death of the seedling. The procedure is carried out with special hoes or suitable improvised means, raising the soil layer by 4-5 cm.

What fertilizers are suitable for gooseberries?

If the leaves fall, the bush does not bloom, its fruits wither, take care of feeding it with mineral or organic fertilizers - both are suitable for gooseberries. In some cases, complex store-bought fertilizers and folk remedies are suitable.

Mineral

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Gooseberries are in dire need of phosphorus and potassium. Containing phosphorus is applied under the bush at the appropriate time:

• superphosphates (diluted with water, used for spring watering of bushes in order to accelerate their growth and development);
• diammophos (suitable for acidic and super acidic soils, compatible with organic matter, but only if pre-infused).

To increase the yield, apply the following to the bushes:

• potassium in the form of sulfate;
• two-component potassium nitrate;
• potash;
• wood ash.

Saturating the soil with potassium helps reduce the number of plants killed by frost and disease.

Organic

The ideal plant growth stimulator is humus mixed with bone meal or wood ash. If humus is not available, then use compost obtained after processing wormwood, creeping thyme, feather grass, rowan berries or hawthorn.

Important! When using fresh manure instead of humus, try to apply it so as not to get on the lower part of the leaves or trunk. Peat must be spread over the manure (mulching).

Complex

The use of complex fertilizers helps to save money and enhance the effect of the applied fertilizing. Most often used:

• ammophosome (orthophosphoric acid, neutralized with ammonia and therefore containing less nitrogen, is applied in spring and autumn);
• nitrophoska (composed of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, taken in equal proportions, approximately 17-18%).

This type of fertilizer is suitable for spring and autumn feeding.

Plant care in spring

Folk remedies

Gooseberries can also be fed with folk remedies:

• tincture of weeds (weeds are collected, poured with 1 bucket of water, left for a week, after which the sediment is drained and the remaining liquid is poured over the gooseberries);
• sour cream and whey mixed with honey, water and yeast (1 liter of whey is mixed with 1 tablespoon of sour cream, 1 teaspoon of honey and 10 liters of water, allowed to ferment, take 0.5 liters each and dilute another 10 liters bushes are watered);
• potato peels and boiling water (1 kg of potato scraps is poured with 1 bucket of boiling water, covered with a lid and allowed to brew for 1 hour, after which 1 cup of ash is added to the mixture and the gooseberries are poured with the prepared solution).

Important! Not all fertilizers can be mixed with each other. The following are not compatible: ammophos and ash, potassium or sodium nitrate and superphosphate.

Time to plant gooseberries in spring according to the lunar calendar 2022

When determining the time for spring planting of this perennial shrub, you need to check the lunar calendar for 2020.

Favorable days for planting this shrub in 2020 are as follows:

:

• from March 26 to 29;
• from April 11 to 15, as well as April 24, 25;
• from May 2 to May 10.

THE MOST ACCURATE SEEDING CALENDAR FOR 2022 - video

If it is not possible to plant on these days, then this procedure can be performed on other days.

The main thing is not to fall into an unfavorable time for planting gooseberries:

• 9, 19-21, 24 March;
• April 8, 15-17, 23;
• May 7, 13, 14, 22;
• 5, 9-11, 21 June.

How to properly fertilize gooseberries

Pruning gooseberries in spring, summer and autumn

The effect of fertilizer depends on how exactly it was applied.

Root feeding

Root feeding is carried out during planting; fertilizers are added to the hole in which the gooseberry roots are placed, as well as throughout the growth and development of the plant.

But they do not water at the root, but 10-20 cm from it, the same applies to bulk fertilizers. The substances used should not come into contact with leaves and berries, unless the fertilizer is intended for dilution for spraying. This can cause burns on the leaves.

Foliar feeding

Foliar feeding

Foliar feeding is used if the leaves and berries look unhealthy and the plant itself is not developing quickly enough.

In this case, fertilizers are used not for watering or pouring under the roots, but for spraying using special sprayers.

Foliar feeding is the fastest and easiest way to saturate plants with useful substances. The leaves don't have to pull them out of the soil; they absorb them immediately. If the bushes are sprayed at the right time, this allows you to save on the amount of fertilizer that is applied to the soil.

Boarding time

The best seedling for planting is a two-year-old one, with roots 20 cm long and 2-3 branches 30 cm long.

The time of planting a gooseberry seedling depends more on the possibility of purchasing it, since it is planted in spring, autumn and summer. It is impossible to accurately answer the question: when is the best time to plant gooseberries? Each term has its advantages and disadvantages.

Planting begins in early spring, before the buds open. The timing of spring planting of gooseberries is limited from late March to mid-April. This period has many advantages:

• fairly moist soil;
• suitable temperature and almost 100% rooting.

However, at this time it is difficult to find seedlings; it is better to grow them yourself in a schoolyard from autumn cuttings.

In addition, when planting gooseberries in the spring, the above-ground part mainly develops. Young bushes that look strong can freeze.

Can be planted in autumn, from mid-September to mid-October. The peculiarities of autumn planting of gooseberries are that at this time the root develops more strongly. In winter, young gooseberry seedlings are tested for frost resistance. Unrooted, weak seedlings freeze out. You don’t have to worry about the remaining plants; they will live in the garden for a long time.

Seedlings with a closed root system can be planted throughout the season. They have well-developed roots and branches; there is no need to shorten them. But summer weather is not conducive to the rapid development of the plant. A seedling that could only be planted in the summer needs abundant watering and temporary shading.

The gardener decides when to plant young gooseberries based on his free time and the availability of seedlings. How to plant a plant correctly depends on the time of planting.

Features of spring feeding of gooseberries

Spring feeding of the bush is extremely important; the future harvest depends on its quality. The bushes are fed repeatedly - before flowering, during it, after the ovaries begin to appear.

How to feed gooseberries in the spring before flowering

Before the buds swell, add the following to each gooseberry bush:

• up to 5 kg of humus or compost;
• urea;
• potassium sulfate;
• superphosphates.

Important! Humus is poured in a layer of 9-10 cm around the bushes, covering with a 1 cm layer of earth or peat. This is necessary to slow down the process of nitrogen evaporation.

How to feed gooseberries during flowering

During flowering, gooseberries are fed:

• slurry;
• nitrophoska (no more than 20 g for each bush).

You can also feed with folk remedies - tinctures of weeds, a mixture of sour cream, honey, whey and water.

How to fertilize gooseberries in spring for a better harvest

To get a large harvest, in May the plant is watered with a mixture of:

• 60 g superphosphate;
• 40 g potassium sulfate;
• 1 l. wood ash.

Feeding gooseberry bushes with manure after flowering is no less effective.

Site selection and preparation

Normal growth and yield of gooseberries strongly depend on the correct choice of planting site.

Optimal conditions for planting gooseberries:

Optimal!

To shelter from drafts, plan to plant on the southeast side of the fence, wall, or nearby bushes/trees:

• Distance to wall/fence – 1.5…2.0 m.,
• To other bushes or trees - 1.0...1.5 m.,
• The distance between gooseberry bushes in a row is 1.5 m.
• Row spacing when planting in rows is 2.5 m.

In most cases, a planting site for growing a gooseberry bush has to be specially prepared in order to minimize the negative impact of certain factors. By preparing the planting site, you can correct almost any soil imperfection.

1. To protect the root system from excess water in a damp area , it is necessary to raise the bed: pour a layer of soil 30...50 cm, the dimensions of the area must be at least 80 cm.
2. Heavy clay soils are converted into light, breathable soils by adding sand and/or rotted sawdust for digging.
3. Sandy soil , through which water literally drains, is compacted by introducing clay into the composition.

The planting pit for successful and long-term cultivation of gooseberries is prepared in a certain sequence:

1. The optimal pit size is 50 x 50 cm, depth is 40...50 cm. It makes sense to prepare trenches for planting gooseberries only on large plantations.
2. The soil is selected in 2 stages: the top layer of more fertile soil is placed near the hole, the bottom layer is thrown into the row.
3. The deposited soil (removed top layer) is mixed with a bucket of compost or mature humus and 200 g (a glass) of complex fertilizer such as Nitroammofoski is added.

The planting hole and soil for filling are ready. You should take care in advance of the mulch that will be laid around the tree trunk to protect the soil from drying out, simplify weeding and loosening, and provide additional protection for the root system in winter.

If there is no organic!

Instead of organic-mineral complex fertilizing, mineral fertilizers can be added to each planting hole in the following composition:

• 200 g superphosphate;
• 150 g urea;
• 60 g of potassium sulfate.

When growing gooseberries, other planting methods . To increase productivity and the availability of planting material of own production, it is practiced to plant 2 cuttings in 1 planting hole at a short distance from each other (20 cm). Such reinforced bushes save space in the garden and produce high yields within 3-4 years. After this, they become very thick and old - they need to be replaced.

Features of summer feeding

In summer, the plant needs nutrients no less than if you feed gooseberries in the spring, but they are added carefully, following a certain pattern.

Berries on a healthy bush

Feeding gooseberries during fruit formation

At the time of fruit formation, the gooseberries will have to be treated with superphosphate. For 1 gooseberry bush, 70 g of superphosphate is enough.

Important! After using superphosphate, the acidity of the soil increases. Before using it, the soil is limed. Liming is not necessary if the soil acidity level is low.

To ensure that the berries ripen sweet and juicy, potassium salt is added to the soil under the bushes. A mixture of 40 g of potassium sulfate or two-component potassium nitrate is poured under each bush. It is also possible to fertilize with organic matter, for example, wood ash. One bush needs 1-2 kg of ash for normal development.

How to feed gooseberries after picking berries

After picking the berries, add manure or humus under the gooseberry bushes. Sometimes the remains of dead weeds or mulch are used for this purpose. But in the first case, there is a risk of transmitting some infectious diseases to the gooseberries along with weeds, and in the second it is important to exercise extreme caution, trying to ensure that the mulch does not touch the root zone.

Features of care depending on the region

Spring work on caring for gooseberries has its own nuances depending on the climatic characteristics of the region:

1. In the south, events begin in early March.
2. In the middle zone (Moscow region) work begins in the 1st-2nd decade of March, depending on weather conditions. Plant care consists of ordinary activities without any special features.
3. In the north-west (in the Leningrad region), as well as in the Urals and Siberia, due to the long winter, spring gooseberry care is carried out in the 1st-2nd half of April and even early May. In the north, return frosts often occur, which destroy flowers. To avoid crop loss, experienced gardeners recommend monitoring the weather and, if necessary, covering young plants at night.

Different climatic conditions of the regions dictate to gardeners their own rules for growing gooseberries. They choose zoned varieties adapted for cultivation in a specific area, and in the northern regions they pay attention to frost-resistant gooseberries.

How to fertilize gooseberries in the fall (feeding for winter)

The plant is left alone (last summer feeding after picking berries) until the beginning of September. With the onset of autumn, gooseberries begin to be prepared for winter.

For this:

• use vermicompost (1 tbsp of the substance is diluted in 10 liters of water and watered at the roots of the plants);
• apply mineral fertilizers (100 g of potassium nitrate and 120 g of dry superphosphate are mixed and sprinkled with this mixture on the ground under the bushes, covering the top with peat or soil);
• water the bushes with potassium sulfate or potassium carbonate;
• use potassium nitrate (400 g is enough for 1 bush);
• sprinkle the ground under the bushes with wood ash (this type of fertilizing is used only if the summer was rainy and cold).

Autumn feeding

You can add humus, manure or compost under the bushes. The main thing to remember is that you can only use one type of fertilizer; it is better not to mix.

Gooseberries are an unpretentious plant, the correct feeding of which helps improve the quality of the fruit and the quantity of the harvest. They are mainly fed with mineral, complex and organic fertilizers, fertilizer prepared independently from weeds or whey. The plant especially needs phosphorus and potassium.

Recommendations for caring for planted gooseberry bushes

Some time after planting, the plant requires weeding, loosening and timely watering. Loosening is carried out to a depth of about 4 centimeters. It is recommended to water the bush no more than 5 times per season.

Spreading varieties require additional garter or installation of supports.

In the fall, sanitary pruning is carried out with the removal of dry and diseased branches. In the second year after planting, the soil is cultivated and fertilizers are applied in the form of ammonium nitrate. After harvesting the fruits, the bushes are sprayed with fungicidal solutions. You can purchase seedlings of fruit bushes in an assortment of varieties now. Take care of the variety of fruit and berry crops in your garden now!