[TTG]

I am a newbie who is about to take on an overgrown and over built on plot. As a big fan of gooseberries I intend to grow these on the plot (at the back near where there is likely to be a little shade from the trees that are at that end). Does anyone have any preferences for varieties? Indeed any advice on fruit bushes such as gooseberries. I am thinking of 4 bushes and possibly some currants (black most likely but also red or white).

Any advice on good cropping varieties? Not too bothered about if they are sweeter just want a good tastey cropping variety.

Also, is there any other type of small fruit bush that I could grow? I know raspberry canes and the other similar fruits such as loganberry, blackberry, etc., but I am not really interested in them as much. I have looked into a few books but wondered if there is some unusual fruit out there that caan grow in this country that I might have missed. It is kind of like vegetables from other parts of the world, not all things can be bought in a supermarket but could, perhaps be grown instead.

[realfood]

For gooseberries, try Invicta for quantity, or Pax for sweetness.
I grow most but not all of other soft fruits such as BLACKBERRY      BLACKCURRANT      BLUEBERRY      CRANBERRY      GOJI BERRIES      GOOSEBERRY      GRAPES        HUCKLEBERRY       LINGONBERRY        JOSTABERRY          KIWI or CHINESE GOOSEBERRY      LOGANBERRY (see Tayberry)                 PEPINO                RASPBERRY     REDCURRANT            RHUBARB           STRAWBERRY           TAYBERRY             WHITECURRANT(see Redcurrant)      WORCESTERBERRY

[Trillium]

I have gooseberries growing in the shade of tall red currant plants and it's doing just fine. The soil is quite poor but the gooseberries don't seem to care. At the moment I have huge reddish berries forming up which need to be picked soon. Can't give you any varieties as they're different over here. Black currants make wonderful jam and for some reason they cost the earth here while red currants sell very cheaply.

As for unusuals, how about grapes or blueberries?

[SG6]

I have leveller and another variety growing as half standards. They are about 4 ft high and the yield is normally good.

For mildrew resistance there are: Hinnonmaki Red, Honnonmaki Yellow, Remarka and Rokula. There is a variety called Black Velvet that is resistant but don't try it as in practical terms the fruit is small, although a lot of it, but the bushes are thorny, very, very thorny. Blood loss while picking is high.

Redcurrents can be trained as cordons and a newish variety called Junifer has better mildew resistance.

As to what else cannot help as you say what you are not interested in but that doesn't help determine what you may want to try.

[Salmo]

Whatever you plant always give them the reccomended spacings. They grow bigger than you think and plenty of air round them means less problems with disease.

[mikem]

Redcurrants are a pain because of their seeds  so that they need to be strained to make e.g. redcurrant jelly. 

Love blackcurrants  but they are a pain to pick but they make lovely jam and fruit pies. 

Gooseberries are my favourites and are very versatile but I get pricked all over my hands when I pick them no matter how careful I am! 

Jostaberries, which are a cross between blackcurrants and gooseberries, are easier to pick than blackcurrants because they are bigger and they don't have the thorns that gooseberries have.

I know that you will know most of the above but it is my long way round suggesting that you grow some jostaberries!  If you know anyone with some then they take very easily from cuttings or by layering. 

[Dominic]

I'd recamend currants rather than fale berries like raspberries, they're much easier to harvest.
Plant them, feed them (my 20 or so get a bucket of NPK a year), mulch them with the grass grown via the NPK, and they will do fine.

Sun is a tricky thing.
My Redcurrant, in full morning sun, is at least 4x the size of my black currants, in about half morning sun.

[TTG]

Thank you for your replies.

SG6 and mikem - I have a long history with very thorny gooseberry bushes going back to toddler days In fact it was only the thorns that kept some of the gooseberries for other family members (that and a few incidents where I got way too close courtesy of an older relative). Needless to say I am a dab hand at picking gooseberries without getting pricked. I absolutely love them and will eat them straight off the bush whether the berries are really ready or not.

Never heard of jostaberries but will look them up, thanks. Apart from liking gooseberries the main reason is that they are shade tolerant. The plot I have been offered (and unless my visit on Friday shows something really wrong with the plot I will take it on) has trees fully on one side and slightly curving round the corners. Although the plot is SW facing or slightly further round so seems to get plenty of sun there is going to be some shade even if it is partial. I also know that gooseberries seem to be quite an easy plant for novices to grow.

I think gooseberries, black currants and possibly these jostaberries are going to get in somewhere. Now it is the veg I have to look at.

One last thing, I have an absolute sun trap at home in the back yard so I reckon a small fruit tree in a largish tub might be a possibility. Does anyone have any recommendations for tub or pot grown fruit trees? I was thinking perhaps a plum, peach or even apricot but I do not know if these are hard to grow in pots. Any advice? When I say sun trap I mean if the sun is shining it seems to get several degrees hotter out back than when in the open nearby. That is of course subjective but it has tarmac and bright walls on two sides facing the sun.

[mikem]

Whilst I doubt that I can help re the container tree I guess that others may be able to give you better advice if you can give them a rough idea where you live.

[TTG]

I live near Lancaster in a small town just north of Lancaster with a small allotment near the outskirts. Not got the plot yet but it seems that if I want it I will get it. I am just being cautious and waiting to get a look around and to speak to the organiser. I might be counting chickens before they've hatched (please don't move me to the chickens keeping topic) but it is my way to know as much as possible about things before I get them. Hence planning the plot before it is fully in my hands.

I do have my house though and that is in the same town just outside the centre. BTW the town is not big, 5-10 minutes and you can walk across it. My house gets sun early on at the front (at an angle) then the sun hits the side of the back part of the house that extends out. Then spends from about 10 am through to almost sun-down in the sun (if there is any sun). Being north Lancashire it can get cold in winter but it is near the coast (actually less than 1 mile but you wouldn't know it as that is at high tide on Morecambe bay). Not really a coastal area in the usual way more country than anything.

Does that provide any further information for suggestions and recommendations on fruit growing in tubs.

[Trillium]

A peach tree would grow in as large a tub as you can find, but the tree would have to be quite a dwarf variety. Any other size, the roots would quickly outgrow the tub and the tree would be a disaster. You'd have to water it well every 2nd day unless you get lots of rain and liquid feed it weekly. Currants, particularly black ones, do very well in tubs, as would bush varieties of cherries.

[Dominic]

Personaly, I'm against tub growing anything.
Never tried it, but ignorant logic says theres only so much plant food in the mud you put in the pot, and once its gone, its gone.

[TTG]

As my back yard is thickly tarmaced and I really don't fancy cutting away at it to get to whatever soil is underneath it is probably my only option to have a productive back yard. I had wondered if it was worthwhile to dig down to earth but you never know what you have underneath and how far down it is. I would say that the tarmac is well laid (opinion of a civil engineer father who has been involved in road design and build for a long career). So I reckon a lot of work to get through. Also I don't know how it would effect drainage.

Tub growing is sometimes the only realistic option, so I need to explore the practical possibilities.

[Sue33]

how about a fig tree, the brown turkey variety is perfect for tubs 

[Greengirl]

There's lots of fruit you can grow in tubs. Why not try minarette trees from Ken Muir - they're upright rather than spreading so you could grow a few different ones (they are expensive though).

As for an unusual fruit, I am growing Honeyberries. They are part of the Honeysuckle family but are supposed to be as tasty as blueberries, but easier to grow & less fussy about soil. I only got mine as small plants this summer so don't know how successful they'll be yet.