Why gooseberry berries fall off before ripening

Gooseberry is a rather viable shrub, but it also reacts negatively to gross mistakes in care. Also, the plant is susceptible to various fungal infections, often parasites attack the planting. All this at an advanced stage leads to the fact that the berries fall off without ripening.

Care errors

First, make sure the berry is properly cared for. Often, the fruits dry and fall off without ripening, for trivial reasons. One of them is excess moisture. The gooseberry root system begins to rot. The ground must be loose so that air can pass through well.

The bush is withering away even without an abundance of sunlight. An area in the shade is not suitable for planting gooseberries.

Advice
Sometimes the reason that the fruits crumble in June is damp or, conversely, too dry weather.

How to feed a shrub

Gooseberries, like most plants, take nutrients from the ground. Regular feeding protects the fruit from drying out and shedding. Fertilize the soil several times a year. In March-April, organic matter or mineral nitrogen fertilizers are used, in May - a mixture of nitrophoska with wood ash, and during the flowering period - potassium sulfate.

In autumn, gooseberries are fertilized with mullein, superphosphate, urea and poultry droppings. It happens that the leaves turn red and curl. In this case, they lack iron or boron.

Dangerous caterpillars

Unripe berries most often dry out due to pests. The larvae easily gnaw the bush in a few days. Without leaves, the process of photosynthesis stops, the plant withers, and the berries crumble.

Gooseberry fire

The light green caterpillar loves to feast on pulp and seeds. She wraps the cobwebs around the fruits and tangles them in a lump. Unripe berries turn red, dry and crumble in June. Biological pesticides will help get rid of it.

Advice
In addition to gooseberries, it affects currants and raspberries.

Sawfly

The body of the individual is light green with black spots. Sawfly larvae leave behind only bare branches. Without leaves, the bush dries up, and unripe berries crumble. To get rid of the parasite, use an infusion of onions, paprika or mustard.

Red-headed aphid

These insects are a common cause of leaves turning yellow and red. This happens when the aphids suck all the juice from the plates. With a strong infection, the unripe fruits dry and crumble from the gooseberry. The soap solution makes the leaves bitter and repels aphids.

How to protect gooseberries

There are five recommendations in total:

1. Dig up the soil in fall to get rid of the pupae in the soil.
2. Check leaves and berries for holes.
3. Shake off the caterpillars on the oilcloth and immediately destroy.
4. The aromas of mint, tomatoes and elderberry scare away pests from the bush. Therefore, plant them near the gooseberries.
5. Spray the leaves periodically with an aqueous solution of mustard, tomato tops, or ash.

Dangerous diseases

Frequent rainfall in May and June increases the risk of infections. To avoid this, feed and process the shrub in early spring.

Mosaic

The disease is transmitted by untreated tools and by sucking insects. The leaves affected by the mosaic turn yellow along the veins, and the berries do not ripen and dry out. The disease cannot be cured, so the only solution is to dig up and burn the bush.

Goblet rust

Its signs are yellow spots on the leaves, which later turn red. The fungus destroys crops, making unripe berries dry and cracked. The likelihood of infection increases if sedge grows nearby.They will cure the disease by spraying with Bordeaux liquid.

Anthracnose

Disease-causing spores lead to the leaves turning yellow, and then covered with a brown shiny coating. Heavy rainfall in June encourages the spread of infection. In advanced cases, even shoots suffer. Protect the gooseberries from insects and moisture to prevent unripe berries from falling off. The plant will be saved by a solution of copper sulfate and the regular removal of plant debris from the site.

If the leaves turn yellow, and the unripe berries turn red ahead of time and crumble, urgently look for the cause of the symptoms and take action. Dealing with problems is much more difficult than preventing them. Remember that timely prevention protects the shrub and makes it stronger.