About Jostaberry
A thornless hybrid cross of a blackcurrant and gooseberry. Combines the large fruit from a gooseberry and unique taste and vitamin content of a blackcurrant – very nutritious! Very vigorous, upright bush producing reliable heavy crops of large shiny black berries – double the size of normal blackcurrants. Flavour is good and berries are rich in Vitamin C – excellent for preserves. Very resistant to mildew but will require protection against frost. Resistant to big bud and foliar diseases.
- Self fertile
- Planting Distance 1.5m apart
- Height & Spread 1.5m x 1.5m
- Crops July
This cross breeding of blackcurrant and gooseberry is a new addition to the British kitchen, but it’s one no foody would want to miss. This is a hardy and easy to grow plant that is great for new growers and expert cooks alike. Thick woody stems produce light green serrated leaves and dangling clusters of round black fruit that combines the sweet tastes of the gooseberry and blackcurrant in a sweet combination that needs to be tried. This fruit goes well with yogurt, ice cream or on its own the sweet juice of the jostaberry goes amazing well with lemonade or if crushed up with gin and tonic water. This hardy jostaberry produces fruits rich in vitamin C that will grow without splitting.
How to look after jostaberry
Jostaberry prefer moist, well-drained soil in full sun, or light shade. Feed with a liquid fertilizer once in the spring to encourage a good yield. Repot every 2-3 years into the same pot or slightly larger. Trim back some of the roots and tease away the old soil replacing it with fresh compost. Trim twice-yearly and In July, trim all new side shoots to 5 leaves. In winter, cut back main stems by half and any side shoots back to 2 buds. Any stems that are damaged, dead or out of place can also be removed.
How do you harvest jostaberry?
In early to mid-summer, the plant will produce small white or pink flowers that will soon fall off to reveal the young fruit. Over the next few months, the fruit will grow inside and change from green to black. Once the whole fruit has gone black you can harvest the fruit by pinching it and twisting it off the stem. Avoid pulling the fruit as it may not come off completely.
How do you store jostaberries?
Once picked a jostaberry will not last long. If you want to preserve your fruits for longer you can either blend the fruits into a thick juice which you can freeze or freeze whole fruits in an airtight bag.
