[Learnerlady]

Hello,
just wondering if anyone has found soft fruit this year having less flavour?
Possibly due to the spell of hot weather?
Maybe me or that strawberries are old but have lots of raspberries but don't taste as good as last year, same with the strawberries and the blackcurrants are bitter so I'm going to leave them a bit longer and hope they improve. The raspberries I've tried at various stages of ripeness but still same

[Nobbie]

The strawberries I harvested during the hot spell didn’t seem that great, I put it down to the hot weather ripening them quickly before developing full flavour. My later ones were as tasty as usual although I had to fight the slugs for those. I think most soft fruit does best with sunshine and showers rather than extremes either way.

[Goosegirl]

I so agree with your observations as to fruit taste. My Joan J have been much later this year in producing flowers and rasps and the few I've harvested haven't been that tasty. Was thinking about whipping them all out and going for the rasps I used to have at our old cottage which I think were Malling Admiral but not sure.

[Nobbie]

I so agree with your observations as to fruit taste. My Joan J have been much later this year in producing flowers and rasps and the few I've harvested haven't been that tasty. Was thinking about whipping them all out and going for the rasps I used to have at our old cottage which I think were Malling Admiral but not sure.

I used to grow them and they were great croppers. I just remember they were very susceptible to wind which broke off the branches with all the fruit on. We seemed to keep getting a windy spell just as the fruit was swelling Still managed a decent crop despite this.

[Learnerlady]

Thanks for the comments, a bit disappointing as generally good quantities and I look to the soft fruit to compensate for the veggies that get eaten by various critters. On some days makes me wonder if its worth the effort......opps did I really say that

[Goosegirl]

Just to add to my previous comment re- my rasps, I harvested a few yesterday and they did taste really good, so I think the earlier ones were as a result of the hot and dry weather, whereas these have had quite a bit of rain and not a lot of warmth. Mmmm.

[missmoneypenny]

My Malling Centenary strawberries were lacking in flavour, it put it down to the variety as it was their 1 st year  and I’d never tried that variety before.

[Growster...]

I grubbed up our six blackcurrant bushes yesterday. They had absolutely no fruit on them whatsoever!

I've kept a dozen or so cuttings to see if they'll go again next year, but am not holding my breath...

I can't understand what's gone wrong as I saw quite a few green berries earlier this 'summer', but nope!

So they're gone...

Raaas look better though so roll on August!

[Goosegirl]

My redcurrant is in its second year and I saw a few strigs of pale fruit earlier on but they've gone now so don't know where or why.

[Potty Plotty Lotty]

My redcurrant is in its second year and I saw a few strigs of pale fruit earlier on but they've gone now so don't know where or why.

Were they netted? If not my bet would be on the birds. They like them before they are ripe enough for human consumption. Once ripe I can leave mine uncovered and they won't touch a berry.

Edited to fix quote - Yorkie

[Growster...]

Do the birds like them when they're green?

I guess that's where all our berries went then!