Oregon · Washington · Idaho
When to plant gooseberries
Plant in the garden: Portland and Seattle Mar 1 – Apr 26; Spokane Apr 1 – May 27; Boise Mar 20 – May 15; Bend Apr 28 – Jun 23.
Your dates in
Gooseberries are thorny bushes closely related to currants, grown for tart, translucent berries in green, red or yellow. Picked slightly underripe they're the classic pie and jam berry; fully ripe, many varieties are sweet enough to eat fresh. European varieties have bigger fruit, while American varieties are smaller but tougher against disease.
Puts gooseberries on your free plan, with dates for your town and a spot in your beds.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Sun
- Full sun to part shade
- Spacing
- 4 to 5 feet apart
- Planting depth
- An inch or two deeper than in the pot
- Frost
- Hardy perennial; comes back every year
- First harvest
- A small crop in year two; full crops from year three
Tough, compact bushes that handle cool summers and some shade. Choose mildew-resistant varieties, and check the leaves in spring for currantworms, green larvae that can strip a bush in days.
Gooseberry planting dates
| Towns | Plant in the garden |
|---|---|
| Portland, OR, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Bend and Redmond, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
| Astoria, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
Dates for six main cities. For any of the other 80 towns, type it in the box at the top of the page or browse all towns.
| Gresham, OR, Oregon City and West Linn, OR, Portland, OR, St. Helens and Scappoose, OR, Wilsonville and Canby, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Hillsboro and Beaverton, OR | Mar 5 – Apr 30 |
| Corvallis and Albany, OR, Eugene, OR, Salem, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Cottage Grove, OR | Mar 13 – May 8 |
| McMinnville and Newberg, OR | Mar 4 – Apr 29 |
| Ashland and Talent, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Grants Pass, OR, Medford, OR, Roseburg, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Astoria, OR, Brookings and Gold Beach, OR, Coos Bay and North Bend, OR, Newport and Lincoln City, OR, Tillamook, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|
| Bend and Redmond, OR, Klamath Falls, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
|---|---|
| Burns, OR | Apr 30 – Jun 25 |
| Lakeview, OR | Apr 23 – Jun 18 |
| Madras, OR, Prineville, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
| Baker City, OR, Enterprise and Joseph, OR, John Day, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
|---|---|
| Hermiston, OR, Hood River, OR, Ontario, OR, Pendleton, OR, The Dalles, OR | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| La Grande, OR | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Bremerton and Port Orchard, WA, Everett, WA, Kent, Renton and Auburn, WA, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Olympia, WA | Mar 18 – May 13 |
| Shelton, WA | Mar 16 – May 11 |
| Anacortes, WA, Bellingham, WA, Friday Harbor and the San Juans, WA, Mount Vernon and Burlington, WA, Oak Harbor and Whidbey Island, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|
| Aberdeen and Hoquiam, WA, Forks, WA, Long Beach and Ilwaco, WA | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Port Angeles, WA, Port Townsend, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Sequim, WA | Mar 10 – May 5 |
| Centralia and Chehalis, WA | Mar 11 – May 6 |
|---|---|
| Longview and Kelso, WA, Vancouver, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Chelan, WA, Wenatchee, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Leavenworth, WA, Omak and Okanogan, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Winthrop and Twisp, WA | Apr 3 – May 29 |
| Ellensburg, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Ephrata and Quincy, WA, Moses Lake, WA, Sunnyside, Grandview and Prosser, WA, Tri-Cities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland), WA, Walla Walla, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Goldendale, WA | Apr 7 – Jun 2 |
| Yakima, WA | Mar 27 – May 22 |
| Colville, WA, Pullman, WA, Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|
| Bonners Ferry, ID, Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, ID, Sandpoint, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
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| Lewiston, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Moscow, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID, Emmett, ID, Nampa and Caldwell, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| McCall, ID | May 11 – Jul 6 |
| Burley and Rupert, ID, Idaho Falls, ID, Pocatello, ID, Rexburg, ID, Twin Falls, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Salmon, ID | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
Gooseberry year at a glance
| Task | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant | Mar | Apr | ||||||||||
| Harvest | Jun | Jul |
Around Portland. Colder towns, especially east of the Cascades, run a few weeks later; the table above has your town's planting dates. Harvest months are for an established plant.
How to grow gooseberries
- Pick a sunny spot with soil that drains well, and mix in an inch or two of compost.
- Plant gooseberry bushes on your city's dates, 4 to 5 feet apart. An inch or two deeper than in the pot.
- Prune in late winter to open the center of the bush and remove stems older than three years. Thick gloves help.
- Harvest: Pick green for cooking when the berries are full-sized but firm, or leave them a few weeks to soften and sweeten for eating fresh.
Growing gooseberries in your part of the Northwest
The same plant behaves differently on the wet west side, the foggy coast and the dry, colder east side.
West-side valleys
Willamette Valley, Puget Sound, southern Oregon
Powdery mildew is the main problem in damp weather; choose resistant varieties.
East of the Cascades
Columbia Basin, Yakima, Boise, Spokane, north Idaho
Gooseberries like afternoon shade in hot summers.
High desert and mountain towns
Central Oregon, high eastern Oregon valleys, McCall, Salmon
Gooseberries are very cold hardy and fruit well in short seasons.
More gooseberry varieties
More widely sold picks that do well somewhere in the Northwest. The tag says which part of the Northwest suits each one best.
Invicta
Heavy crops of large green berries for cooking, on a vigorous, thorny bush with good resistance to powdery mildew.
Both sides
Hinnonmaki Red
Medium berries that turn dark red and sweet when ripe, with a tart skin. Compact, very hardy and mildew-resistant.
Both sides
Pixwell
An old, very hardy American variety with berries that hang away from the thorns, making picking easier. Good for pies and jam.
Both sides
Captivator
Nearly thornless stems and teardrop-shaped berries that ripen pink-red and sweet. A good pick for gardens with kids.
Both sides
How much to grow
How many to plant
For a family of four, 2 to 4 bushes.
What to expect
About 4 to 8 pounds per mature bush.
Storing the harvest
Keep two weeks in the fridge. Freeze whole.
Key numbers
- Full sun to part shadeSun
- 6.0–7.0Soil pH
- 15–20 yearsProductive life
- Powdery mildewBiggest risk
Top care tip: Prune in late winter to open the center, and check under the leaves for currantworm in April and May.
Growing notes
What makes the difference in Northwest gardens, in plain language.
Green, red and dessert gooseberries
Gooseberries ripen from early to midsummer. Picked green and firm, they're tart and perfect for pies, sauces and jam. Left to ripen, many turn red, yellow or purple and get sweet enough to eat fresh. They're compact, very hardy bushes that do well in cool summers.
Mildew and currantworm
Powdery mildew is the main disease: a white, felty coating on leaves and fruit. Plant mildew-resistant varieties like Invicta, Hinnonmaki Red or Captivator, keep the center of the bush open and avoid heavy nitrogen feeding.
In spring, imported currantworm larvae can strip leaves fast. Check the undersides of lower leaves from April and pick them off or spray with spinosad.
Pruning
Gooseberries fruit on one- to three-year-old wood. In late winter, remove stems older than three years and any that cross or crowd the center. Pruning to an open, goblet shape improves airflow (fewer disease problems) and makes the thorny bush easier to pick.
Good neighbors
Good neighbors
- Currants. Same needs and pruning style.
Pests and problems
What most often goes wrong with gooseberries in Northwest gardens, how to spot it and what to do.
Powdery mildew
Signs: White coating on leaves and fruit.
What to do: Resistant varieties and pruning for airflow.
Imported currantworm
Signs: Leaves stripped in spring.
What to do: Check and pick off larvae.
Common questions about growing gooseberries
When should I plant gooseberries in Oregon, Washington and Idaho?
Plant in the garden: Mar 1 – Apr 26 in Portland and Seattle, Apr 1 – May 27 in Spokane, Mar 20 – May 15 in Boise and Apr 28 – Jun 23 in Bend. Pick your town at the top of the page for your own dates.
When are gooseberries ripe?
For cooking, pick when full-sized but still firm. For eating fresh, wait until they soften slightly and reach full color.
Are there thornless gooseberries?
Captivator is nearly thornless. Most other varieties have thorns, so wear thick gloves.
Can gooseberries spread white pine blister rust?
They can host it, though less readily than black currants. Rust-resistant varieties reduce the risk.
See what else to plant in March or April.
Strawberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
Blackberries
Grapes
Hardy kiwi
Honeyberries
Currants
Elderberries