Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: MoreWhisky on June 18, 2011, 19:24

Title: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: MoreWhisky on June 18, 2011, 19:24

Im have been growing a leveller gooseberry bush for 3 yrs now and have quite a crop this yr, at last  :D

They are greenish yellow now and as  i keep eating one to check the tart/sweetness they are  getting sweeter. But im not sure how yellow and sweet they will get. im actually thinking should i pick them now or should i wait longer  :unsure:

Any Leveller growers out ? Can someone advise me when i will know they are perfectly ready?

Help  :) i been waiting yrs for this moment and dont want to get it wrong.

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: Nobbie on June 18, 2011, 19:30

What do you want to do with them? For pies and crumbles I pick them when green and tart in taste. If you want to eat them raw as desert, just leave until they go yellow and soft, although the birds will probably have them first. It's really just a matter of taste.

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: 240173paul on June 18, 2011, 19:37

Wished I picked mine last week, went away took the pest / bird controller (dog) and the birds eat them >:(

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: MoreWhisky on June 18, 2011, 19:40

The birds wont have mine mate they are in a fruit cage  8).

The leveller is meant to be a yellow desert gooseberry, the bit that im not sure about is how yellow and sweet they will go, i would be mortified if i went down tomorrow andi left em to long and they have all fallen off.

Thanks for your reply  dude.

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: JohnB47 on June 18, 2011, 23:22

I'm growing Leveller and Winhams Industry. The Pidgeons got most of the Winhams before I netted them (I'll do better next year, honest).

One question though - the remaining winhams are going nice and red now but the Leveller fruit are also getting a blush on. Is this normal - should they be yellow?

Just wondering if I've been sold a pup.

If people think leveller should be either green or yellow, I might post a pic.

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: MoreWhisky on June 19, 2011, 00:28

I was under the impression that the leveller was a bush that was especially good if left to yellow. But i could be wrong?

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: JohnB47 on June 19, 2011, 19:11

Here's a pic of my leveller:

What do you recon?

Title: Re: gooseberrys ready question?
Post by: MoreWhisky on June 19, 2011, 21:31

Heres where i bought my leveller from says yellow.

Top quality nursery that place, nice pic to.

http://www.rvroger.co.uk/index.php?linksource=stockitem&listgroupfile=fruitandnuttrees&parentpagefile=opengroundfruit&season=MAIN&webfilename=gooseberry_leveller