I'll second Scott's comments about Poorman. I've had no disease problems with it and the plant is vigorous. Mine is in full sun. The fruit is excellent, though as Scott says it is not as productive as other varieties. Many gooseberry varieties will sweeten up if you leave them on the plant long enough, but many people use them before they are sweet for pies etc., where they taste somewhat like rhubarb. Whitman farms should tell which varieties are best for fresh eating ('desert' varieties). Gooseberries are prone to mildew, and if you are in a humid climate you would be advised to get mildew-resistant varieties. They also suffer other diseases. Invicta is prone to a leaf spot disease. My gooseberries suffer some sort of insect damage, maybe gooseberry sawfly. I have found that it is imperative to net gooseberries if I am to get fruit. Given their thorns, this is easier said than done. It might make sense to make a cage around them over which you can place netting or shade cloth once the fruit start to develop. I have found black currants somewhat easier to grow here in humid Maryland than red currants, though red currants make a sublime jam or jelly. As with gooseberries, it is wise to select varieties resistant to mildew if you live in a humid climate. Although currants and gooseberries do not grow well from seed, they do grow extremely well -- especially currants -- from cuttings. If you buy a currant plant with well developed stems, you will want to cut these down before planting, but don't throw away the cuttings. Simply put them in the ground with a few buds above ground, keep them moist, and you will very quickly have new plants. Most varieties of gooseberries are very thorny. If planted as bushes they have a tendency to have branches that brush against the ground. If I were planting more gooseberries, I would probably try growing them as standards -- that is, as plants with a single stem of a couple of feet above which are the branches. You can look up information about this on the web.

I grow 15 different ribes in zone 7-8  plenty of chilling hours (below 45°F). Likely they need a few hundred hours or possibly as much as 1000. Cool partly shaded from west, heat. Maritime climes are cool and likely preferred.  We have 20 native ribes species Western Cascades, Washington. Its 65°F. Average high in July and August. Sufficient chilling and geat tolerance is the question. I know many ribes that are fine with dry heat of 90 to 105°F. But they get plenty of chilling hours.    Because I ship out to many states I am still questioning thd yield of fruiting plants in zone 9-10. Please help! Any NAFEX members out there doing the science of trialing?    Gil Schieber of Skipley Farm

Thanks for all your comments. Regarding sun exposure - the other currants which get more direct sun are exhibiting the same behavior plus the currant(s)in the photo were growing great before they were pruned. So I don't think sun exposure is the main issue though it could be a factor. It looks like I pruned too much too soon. It seems like my choices are to fertilize (or not) and wait and see what they do next Spring OR just start over from scratch with new currants. Live and learn. However, it seems like there is more to the plants I have in the ground now than the bare-root plants I would get the from the nursery - the question is how much foliage I will get in the spring with the existing plants. Anyway, do you all think I should get new plants or just wait and see?

Hands down, the native golden currant (Ribes aureum) is the best tasting currant that I've tried. I'm not really a fan of black currants for fresh eating, and red and pink ones are good, but still a bit puckery right off the bush. I've been harvesting these native gems the last few days, and they are wonderful. They can be much larger, approaching the size of your average gooseberry, come in black, red, orange, and gold when ripe (often on the same bush), and are produced in abundance on very large (to over 10 feet tall in some cases) drought tolerant, fast-growing shrubs. Hard to beat... The catch? Ribes aureum has only one recognized cultivar, which is just a fruiting ornamental variety, so you don't know exactly what you're getting in a particular plant. This currant is not very abundant in the wild, is not grown commercially for fruit, and is used almost exclusively for landscaping. I imagine that very few people grow it in garden situations, and fewer still take advantage of the berries. Boy, are people missing out!