Jostaberry
Ribes × nidigrolaria
Kirsty's jostaberry, bought alongside Dave and Stumpy. Multi-stemmed with a thick, gnarled base. Planted out beside the new veg bed in October 2026 and mulched with bark.
- Common name
- Jostaberry
- Section
- Fruit, veg & herbs
- Spot
- Garden (beside the veg bed)
- Soil
- Garden soil with bark mulch
- Options
Potential
A fruiting shrub for the edible end of the garden, now with room to get on with it. A separate propagated plant could offer material for a future bonsai experiment.
- From
- A big chain garden centre (reduced), Sep 2026
- Age
- About 5 years
- Next repot
- Not needed: it's in the ground
- Edible
- ✅ Yes: Jostaberries: a blackcurrant and gooseberry cross.
- 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
- What to expect
- Flowering and cropping depend on maturity, variety, pollination and growing conditions. First useful harvests may take several seasons. Flowers Apr–May.
- Feeding
- Every 28 days, Mar–Jul, with High-potash fruit feed
- Transplanted
Out of its 3-litre pot and into the ground beside the new veg bed. Bark mulch round the base.
- Observation
Several stems from a chunky base, lots of autumn yellowing and leaf drop (normal for the season). Moss on the compost surface.
🎮
Dizzy spends the whole game hunting down fruit. Berries very much included.
Look it up →