Propagating Gooseberries and Currants

Today, I'm focusing on the practical topic of taking semi-hardwood cuttings of soft fruit, specifically gooseberries and black currants. You can do this in the autumn or spring, but I prefer the autumn to give the roots more time to develop before the buds burst and top growth develops for the new season.

To ensure you maximise the chance of roots forming and a healthy plant, it is best to take cuttings from this year's growth. Such growth is quite easy to identify when you know what to look for. The bark is lighter in colour and you can see a sort of joint in the wood between this new growth and older growth like in the photo below.

This year's gooseberry growth
I take long cuttings, about 20cm, to ensure they have a good string of buds along their length. About ten is great.
 
gooseberry semi-hardwood cutting
At the very base, it is best to cut right below a bud. This encourages root formation.
 
basal cut
If the cuttings still have leaves, gently pull them off by hand as this creates a clean wound.
 
Removing all but the very top leaves minimises water loss.
gooseberry cuttings
Then, you can plant the cuttings by burying at least half the buds on each stem. This again reduces water loss and maximises the possibility of root growth.
Finally, all that's left is to water and wait. I'm keeping mine protected in a cold greenhouse over winter this year to minimise frost exposure.
gooseberry and currant propagation
They should be ready to plant out next autumn, if everything goes according to plan that is. Fingers crossed.

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