Gooseberry care in fall and preparation for winter

Autumn care

An annual increase in yield is one of the key tasks and, perhaps, the main desire of gardeners all over the world. Caring for gooseberries in the fall is primarily aimed at supporting the plant after harvest and helping it gain strength before hibernation. Moreover, gooseberry bushes need to provide a favorable habitat so as not to endanger the development of fungal and viral diseases.

The first step is to remove the weeds that grow around the bush. As you know, in the weed grass there can be fungal spores or insect nests, which will grow with the arrival of heat. The high resistance of pests to low temperatures makes them tenacious and endangers not only the planting of gooseberries, but all the surrounding plants, since spores are easily carried by the wind. For this reason, after harvesting and the leaves have fallen, they must be completely removed from the beds.

Gooseberries ripen in August, therefore, the main scale of work is carried out this month. After harvesting, the preparation of the beds for winter begins. The first step is to loosen the ground between the bushes and next to them. The row spacing is dug to the depth of the shovel bayonet, but the near-trunk circle and the space between the bushes are no more than 10 centimeters so as not to damage the roots.

It is recommended to combine soil loosening with top dressing and soil treatment with antifungal drugs. For feeding, phosphorus and potassium are used, mixing 25 grams of each fertilizer per bush.

But in order to prevent diseases from developing, you will need drugs "Fitosporin", "Topaz" and "Fundazol". These preparations can be used to treat plants not only after harvesting, but also on the eve of flowering. These are fungicides of complex action that protect gooseberries from powdery mildew, rust of leaves and shoots, anthracnose, that is, the most dangerous diseases caused by a fungus that move freely between any plants in the garden and in the garden.

After finishing the treatment, it is necessary to thoroughly water all plantings in order to maximally saturate the plants with moisture and prepare them for pruning.

Pruning gooseberry bushes in the fall

Wellness pruning of bushes is necessary in order to tone the plant, to get rid of old parts that no longer bear fruit, but nevertheless take away some of the nutrient resources. In addition to the health-improving component, pruning allows the shrubs to be shaped in a certain way to make them easier to care for. From the moment of harvesting, at least a month must pass before you can begin to form a bush.

Usually pruning is carried out in September or early October so that the bush has time to recover from the damage it has received before the first frosts.

The first step is to identify several strong shoots, which will act as fruitful next year. All other shoots must be cut off. Use a garden pruner and heavy gloves to avoid injury. The remaining branches must be shortened, leaving only a third of their length.Branches covered with black bark must be removed completely - these are old and almost dead parts that only harm the gooseberry. Remove branches that grow inward to keep the shrub free from excessive thickening and provide good access to sunlight in all parts of it next year.

Those parts of the bush that are more than 5 years old are also subjected to preventive pruning. By this age, they lose their fertile abilities. They either stop forming berries, or appear very small and with altered taste. At the same time, they take away a rather large amount of nutrients from the bush, thereby depriving the fruitful branches and shoots of the necessary nutrition.

After the end of pruning, all sections must be treated with garden pitch to avoid infection. Remember that only three large shoots can be pruned each year, as removing more is more likely to harm the plant.

Preparing for winter

As soon as the time for harvesting and pruning the bush has passed, the preparation of the plant for wintering begins. A few weeks before the first frost, the gooseberry bushes are watered again abundantly to support after pruning. Then fertilizer is applied again, but now as mulch. Usually peat and humus are used, creating a “pillow” 10 centimeters high. This will help the gooseberries hold out after the heat has left and until the first snow.

If you haven't done prophylactic treatments with fungicides and insecticides after harvest, this is your last chance to spray the bushes and the soil around them.

Remember that preventive plant treatment protects not only the gooseberry, but all other plants as well.

The spores of the fungus are easily carried long distances by the wind. That is, both from the gooseberry bushes, and the causative agent of the disease can get on them. Therefore, it is important to protect the plantings so as not to leave the disease a single chance.

Video "Step-by-step preparation of gooseberries for winter"

In this video, you will learn how to care for gooseberries in the fall and prepare them for winter.