More fruit bushes-to-be – jostaberry

Posted by louisa on Wednesday 16 March 2011 in growing | 4 comments

A while ago, I said I was done planting fruit bushes for the year, then about a week later I remembered I had some honeyberry bushes on order but once they were planted up, that was it re: fruit bushes for the year. Oh, and there was also the then on order, now planted out cherry tree – definitely nothing else. Definitely, definitely, definitely.

The magnificently wonderful John B popped around last night, bringing with him some of his damson wine (which my John has declared amazing), a jar of his homemade “John’s Spicy Sausage Sauce” (which we shall use to spice up our sausages ASAP) and some jostaberry canes.

I hadn’t heard of jostaberries before John mentioned them to us a while ago – they’re a cross between gooseberries and blackcurrants. Early on, they have the taste & transparency of gooseberries but they darken to end up like big blackcurrants. They also have rather big spikes on them.

He pruned his bushes at the weekend and I won’t be able to plant the cuttings until tomorrow so they might need a bit of TLC – or might just flat out not regrow – but it’s worth a shot.

I plonked them in a tub of water when they arrived and we decided it looked like the worst, most painful, most relationship-ending bouquet of flowers ever — unhappy Valentine’s day. Hopefully though, they’ll eventually make us berry happy indeed.