gooseberries

[simoncpg]

Hi All
Ho far apart do you need to plant gooseberrie bushes, and how should you prep hole?
Thanks
Si.

[chefgage]

I planted three gooseberry bushies last October. I spaced them about a metre apart.
Before planting I sat the pot in a bucket of water for about an hour to give the roots a thougher
Soaking. Whilst this was happening I dug a hole for each bush, put some compost in and mixed a bit
Of the soil with it. Then I put the bush in the hole and sat and waited for it to grow

With the weather warming up they are starting to bud nicely

I am sure the experts on here might have some better suggestions but it seems to be ok

[rustylady]

Link here for you http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...searchid=55445

[Aberdeenplotter]

I have mine 5ft apart each way. The thorns on these bushes are lethal and you need to be able to move safely between the bushes

[FB.]

Most plants can, within reason, be spaced as far apart or as closely as you like.
If planted close, they'll compete with each other and be smaller. If planted widely, they'll usually eventually fill the space.
Some varieties are more (or less) vigorous than others, so ideal spacing will depend on how vigorous the variety and also the quality of the soil. In general, soft fruits like nutritious soil. Manure mulches in late winter/early spring are ideal.
If you have the enthusiasm, dig-in a generous amount of compost or manure into your soil before planting. One part "raw" compost/manure to two parts soil, although when using well-matured compost/manure, or on really poor soils, you can have equal amounts mixed with the soil.

As ABplotter says: the main consideration will be accessiblilty around the living-barbed-wire fence you're creating. Gooseberries do vary a bit from one variety to another regarding how thorny they are.