Dave
Ribes × nidigrolaria
Chunky, gnarled base with knobbly nebari and several old cut stumps. Two trunks, a tall straight leader and a shorter stub, plus a low branch sweeping to one side. Roots wired into the new pot to hold it steady.
- Common name
- Jostaberry
- Section
- Bonsai (also in Fruit, veg & herbs)
- Style
- Pre-bonsai / raw material
- Spot
- Outdoor windowsill
- Soil
- Westland bonsai mix
- Options
Potential
Bonsai: a possible compact fruiting shrub with a substantial base.
Alternatively, a jostaberry bush for an edible garden or generous container.
- From
- A big chain garden centre, Sep 2026
- Age
- About 6 years
- Next repot
- Around Mar 2027
- Edible
- 🤔 Sort of: Jostaberries, if a bonsai ever manages to fruit.
- Hardy
- ✅ Fully
- Garden-centre price
- about £15
Did you know?
Bred in Germany in the 1970s, the name combines the German words for blackcurrant (Johannisbeere) and gooseberry (Stachelbeere).
Care & updates
- Next root check
- Mar 2027
- What to expect
- Slow and steady: expect fresh shoots each spring to pinch back, thickening a little more each year.
- Feeding
- Every 14 days, Mar–Aug, with Balanced bonsai feed, half strength
- Repotted
Gentle root prune. Into plastic training pot, roots tied in with wire.
- Pruned
Gentle top prune.
- Observation
Some autumn yellowing and leaf-edge browning. One leaf with a pale fuzzy patch; watch for mildew and remove the leaf if it spreads.
🎮
Dizzy spends the whole game hunting down fruit. Berries very much included.
Look it up →