Prune gooseberries, red and whitecurrants

When winter pruning gooseberries, red and whitecurrants, try to wait until just before 'bud-burst'. This is when the new buds are swelling and just ready to open. By leaving the pruning work as late as possible, it minimises the amount of damage birds will cause to the plants.

For newly planted bushes, make sure there are no sideshoots within the first four inches or so, then prune back the remaining main shoots by half. For second-year bushes, prune all of this year's growth back by half again, making sure you do not cut into the previous year's growth. Make sure that there are no stems growing inward to the bush, as you want to develop an open framework.

Whether grown in bush form or trained against a wall, established plants are pruned using the 'spur pruning' method. Prune all of this year's growth back to one bud away from your permanent framework of branches. If any of the older framework branches are no longer producing fruit then prune them out now, having selected a new bud to eventually replace the branch.

Why prune?

How to prune