About
This cross between a gooseberry and a blackcurrant, combining the size of a gooseberry with the flavour of blackcurrant. These deciduous bushes are vigorous and spineless. You can eat fruit straight from the bush or use it in desserts and preserves. The self-fertile bushes produce good crops of fruit that matures in July or August.
About the genus
Ribes can be deciduous or evergreen shrubs, sometimes spiny, with simple, usually palmately lobed leaves and small tubular or bell-shaped, solitary or racemose flowers borne in spring or summer, followed by juicy, sometimes edible berries
Growing conditions
SunlightFull sun, Partial shade
Soil typeChalk, Clay, Loam, Sand
Soil pHAcid, Alkaline, Neutral
Soil moistureMoist but well-drained
AspectEast-facing, South-facing, West-facing
ExposureSheltered
UK hardinessH5
Plant details
Plant typeFruit Edible
HabitBushy
FoliageDeciduous
Height1.5-2.5 metres
Spread1-1.5 metres
Time to full height2-5 years
Suggested usesCottage and informal garden
Care notes
CultivationJostaberries prefer a sunny site with well-drained but moisture-retentive soil, but will cope in most other soil conditions and tolerate light shade. Mulch annually with well-rotted manure or compost and apply a general purpose fertiliser in spring. Grow as blackcurrants so please see our blackcurrant cultivation page for more growing tips
PruningPrune when dormant in winter. Aim to keep an open centred goblet shaped bush, removing some of the older unproductive stems each year.
PropagationPropagate by hardwood cuttings in the dormant season
Pest resistanceMay be susceptible to birds eating fruits
Disease resistanceGenerally disease-free, resistant to gooseberry leaf spot and gooseberry mildew