Stan Thomas (83) writes in with a request to diagnose his gooseberry - what is going on here? Some are ok but about half have this horrible looking infection of some kind. Any suggestions greatly appreciated does it confirm your earlier diagnosis?
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I would say not. It looks more like a brown rot more common in tree fruit. Mildew (fluffy white growth on leaves and fruit usually in damp air and crowded conditions) and sawfly larvae (no leaves left at all) are the classic gooseberry problems. But this year, I had a phenomenon I called early goose drop where my cherished berries dropped prematurely, while any remaining ones appeared hit by some sort of fungus, with a bit of darkened leaf thrown in. Having looked through my various books, I found no suggestions and so diagnosed the serious and incurable condition, late frost syndrome. I'm wondering if Mr Thomas's berries have suffered something similar, perhaps caused by sun scald, frost or high/cold winds or combination (does it affect mainly the top of the berries?). This would damage the berries allowing a virus or fungus to infect them. Consult a good microbiologist, if you know any.
ReplyDeleteYour description of possible causes sounds like a typical week in Wales (apart from the sun scald maybe)it is mainly the tops of the berries. Looks like there is not much to do apart from try again next year.
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