Gooseberry (Ribes uva-crispa)

Edibility:Edible Good

Eating notes: Wild Gooseberries are too sour to eat raw, although a fully ripe wilding may be palatable. Gooseberries are used in a range of deserts: jams, fools, crumbles, pies, etc.

Gooseberry is a native plant in the UK, but genuine wild varieties are found only occasionally. You may also find wildings, plants seeded from garden varieties.

Height: 80 - 160cm

Leaves: Leaves have 3 or 5 lobes and a bluntly-toothed edge.

Flowers: Small non-descript drooping flowers. The 5 upturned reddish sepals are more visible than the tiny white petals.

Stems: An untidy tangled mass of thorny grey-barked branches.

Fruit: Egg-shaped green fruit with some soft spines. Variable in size from 1.5 - 3cm.