Diagnosing and combating diseases in gooseberries

Diagnosing and combating diseases in gooseberries

American gooseberry powdery mildew

For gooseberry bushes, sunny, warm summer weather is always associated with a threat from American gooseberry powdery mildew. This is the widespread fungal infection Sphaerotheca mors-uvae. A floury-white coating appears on the leaves, berries and the tips of the shoots. This gradually turns brown. The gooseberries will rot and the leaves wither. How to stop the disease:

  • cut off all affected shoots
  • In addition, shorten all shoot tips by 5 centimeters
  • Never dispose of the clippings on the compost
  • spray with a solution of 1 tablespoon of baking soda and 15 ml of curd soap, vegetable oil in 2 liters of water

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Planting resistant gooseberry varieties such as 'Rolanda', 'Pax', 'Reveda' or 'Rokula' has a preventive effect. In addition, consistent pruning is strongly recommended after each harvest. On this occasion, all shoot tips should be cut again by 5 centimeters, because the fungal spores overwinter here.

Leaf fall disease

Rainy weather minimizes the threat posed by American gooseberry powdery mildew, but it also opens the door to leaf fall disease. Brown spots can be seen on the foliage that flow into one another. The leaf margins turn yellow, the entire leaf dress falls off. Since no effective control agents are allowed for the hobby garden, only effective prevention can ward off the disease:

  • Always plant gooseberries at a sufficient distance
  • do not grow in dry, sandy, poor soil
  • spray repeatedly in spring with a mix of horsetail broth and diluted nettle liquid
  • when the fruit drapes begin, switch to onion peel tea
  • do not leave any leaves under the berry bushes
  • thinning and pruning regularly after harvest
  • if it is dry, water abundantly in the early morning

The selection of resistant varieties has also proven itself here in order not to give the fungal infection a chance. First and foremost, 'Rolanda', 'Risulfa' or 'Rixanta' come into question. The dark red 'rokula' has proven to be a little susceptible.

Tips & Tricks

Various pests have specialized in gooseberries. They are called gooseberry fly, gooseberry fly or gooseberry sawfly. In the natural garden with many beneficial insects, such as birds, hedgehogs, parasitic wasps (14.59 € at Amazon *) and colleagues, pests have bad cards. In addition, a close-meshed insect net protects every berry bush from uninvited visitors.

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