Ribes uva-crispa Crispa 'Goldling'

The 'Goldling' Gooseberry Bush is a recent creation selected for its large, high-quality fruits, high and regular yield, healthy growth, and proven resistance to powdery mildew, even in humid conditions. This small bush is covered in greenish flowers in April, which are relatively insignificant but a food source for bees and other beneficial garden insects. The harvest period extends from July to August. Less acidic and juicier than Cluster Gooseberries, 'Goldling' fruits are enjoyed like candy. They are delicious raw, with thin, smooth skin and almost no hairs—plant from October to March for a harvest in August.

This gooseberry's delicious and fruity taste is perfect for enhancing salads, adding flavour to savoury dishes, elevating desserts and pastries, or making delicious jams. With moderate growth, this bush is easy to care for and can easily find a place in the garden, either in the ground or grown in a sufficiently large pot.

The Gooseberry, scientifically known as Ribes grossularia var. uva-crispa, is also called the Common Gooseberry, Curly Grape, or Gooseberry Currant. It belongs to the Grossulariaceae family, like the Red Currants (Ribes rubrum) and the Blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum). The name "Gooseberry" comes from the English, who have been using this gooseberry for a long time to make a sweet and sour sauce to accompany mackerel. Cultivated in northern Europe since the 16th century, the Gooseberry is a fertile hybrid from cross-breeding between two species native to Europe and North Africa, still found in montane forests in Scotland, France, and the Caucasus.

The 'Goldling' Gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa Crispa 'Goldling') is a recent Swiss creation from the Crispa range. This range comprises gooseberries selected for their high yields, fleshy and juicy fruits with high sugar content, and vigorous and disease-resistant plants. It forms a bushy, thorny bush with a tufted habit of slightly stiff, ramified, and spreading branches. This very hardy bush reaches a height of 1m (3ft) with a spread of 80cm (32in). The foliage is deciduous, with palmate, lobed, and aromatic medium-green leaves. This bush resembles classic gooseberries but is mainly distinguished by its fruits: larger, with a sweet flavour, they appear solitarily along the branches, unlike cluster gooseberries. Apart from a few inermous varieties, the Gooseberry has thorny stems. The flowering occurs in spring in clusters of small, reasonably insignificant greenish flowers intensely visited by bees. Fruiting occurs mainly on one and two-year-old branches. The harvest takes place in July and August. The bush is then covered in berries, round to oval, with smooth skin, almost no hairs, and a diameter of 1.4cm (1in), distributed along the branches. When ripe, the gooseberries turn a mustard yellow colour with golden veins and are filled with a translucent, juicy, fruity, sweet, and slightly acidic pulp containing tiny seeds.

The 'Goldling' Yellow Gooseberry is self-fertile, so it does not need a companion to bear fruit, but having another variety nearby will increase production. The fruits can be picked as they ripen, and picking is made easier due to the size of the berries. A gooseberry bush produces around 2 to 4kg of fruit per plant, depending on the age and growing conditions. The fruits contain vitamin C, antioxidants, minerals, trace elements, potassium, calcium, and phosphorus. Moreover, their low sugar content makes them one of the least energy-dense small fruits (50 kcal per 100g). The fruit is purifying for the body thanks to its diuretic, digestive, liver decongestant, and laxative properties provided it is consumed when barely ripe. When picked from the bush, they are exquisite when eaten fresh, and for added indulgence, they can be sprinkled with a bit of granulated sugar. In cooking, to attenuate the acidity of the fruits, they can be blanched for a minute and then refreshed under cold water. Excellent in jellies or jams, they can also be used to garnish pies and make cakes. They are perfect for making syrups, sorbets, ice creams, or desserts. The delicate balance between the flavours and acidity of the fruits offers an interesting use to accompany meats (game, poultry...), fatty fish (sardines, mackerel, tuna...), or as a garnish for salads.

During the summer, the Gooseberry provides the satisfaction of bountiful harvests and the pleasure of tasting delicious fruits but beware of the thorns. You can associate it with Blackcurrants, Raspberries, Blueberries, Mayberries, or other varieties of small fruits to create a gourmet hedge, strengthening its multiple culinary advantages. As in any planting, it is essential to alternate species and varieties where possible. This limits the risk of diseases and promotes pollination, even if the variety is self-fertile. This variety can be grown in a pot, but you must choose a container at least 40 cm (16in) tall and water regularly with non-calcareous water.