There seems about gooseberries, Ribes uva-crispa, to be something peculiarly attractive to northwestern Europeans. Despite being native to Europe, Caucasus, and North Africa it seems only in England, Scotland, Scandinavia and, perhaps, Russia that the fruit has maintained a popularity.
There are problems, of course. The metre or so high shrubs have spiny branches. Not kept pruned and in an area with good air movement, they are prone to mildew. Growing is banned outright or restricted in much of the U.S. True, gooseberries, like their cousins the currants, may act as cohosts of the white pine blister rust disease. This excuse is considered dubious elsewhere, on par with the claims of certain presidents. Then there remains the preparation of the hairy berries, an operation known as 'top and tailing.' This involved pinching off the green stem and dead blossom of each individual fruit. Falstaff may have had something when Shakespeare had him declare that somethings "are not worth a gooseberry," in Henry IV Part II.
