Planting fruit bushes

charlies_mum

I bought 3 fruit bushes from Aldi (redcurrant, blackcurrant and gooseberry) and want to plant them in my allotment, but it will be a while before it is ready. They are now sprouting, so should I put them into pots, and will they be OK outside, or should they be in a greehouse ?

angie_loves_veg

I'm no expert on fruit, but my gut instinct would be to pot them into decent sized pots, and keep them outside, but frost free - surely this must be better than keeping them without soil around the roots? When your lottie is ready, I would dig big holes, mix in manure (or whatever they need) and plant.

Fruit expert required to give real advice.......!

harpo1

Definitely not in a green house. Looks they have come on because of the heat in the shop. Normally this is the sort of stuff you plant bare rooted when still dormant. Well its not doemant now, but it probably isn't in full growth either. Try & break in gently to the big outdoors by keeping somewhere sheltered ( by a wall is good) for a week or so. Then make a good hole, break up the bottom, a handfull of growmore back fill so the fertiliser dosen't touch the roots & plant as long as it isn't completely freezing or sopping wet. Then protect with either keeping the cardboard they came in round them as a bit of a wind break or some garden fleece . As it starts to grow away remove the mollycoddling & off you go !!

Lord_Gardener

It's just the roots that need protecting, just cut a slot in the ground and pop them in where they'll be fine!

oscarbobbins

After being inspired on this thread, i have been out and bought a blackcurrent, a raspberry and a gooseberry bush from Morrisons. Is this the right time of year to plant out? Very excited about growing my own food and will step up to do tomatoes, cucumbers, chillis, strawberries etc this year.

alice-mary

I've done exactly the same thing! I have blackcurrant, redcurrant, raspberry, gooseberry and blackberry canes all waiting for me to find out what to do with them and when to do it!

I've read the guidance on the packaging but am still very nervous about planting anything while the weather forecast for the end of this month and the beginning of Feb is SO cold! I'm afraid I can't help you but you aren't on your own in looking forward to enjoying the fruits (no pun intended) of your future labours!! Any advice given is greatly anticipated by me too!!

Farway

I assume they are bare rooted? Not in pots?

Now is good to plant out, however if you have frosted ground, like I have for over a week, far better to leave them somewhere cool [so they do not start sprouting early] until the ground thaws out, otherwise you run risk of them drying out as all moisture is frozen and not available

If they are in pots, then just keep them cool & dampish, if bare roots, put roots in bucket of water and keep cool [in shed / porch maybe] until thaw arrives

ALIBOBSY

Was wondering about this as lidl/aldi usually get bushes in end of jan/start of feb. Was wondering if I could pop them into pots in compost in the porch for now, then plant out later?

ali x

RAS

Hi

is the porch enclosed?

The bushes need to be outdoors and to get rained on.

And to get COLD.

Karmacat

I've been hunting the right thread, and thought this one might be appropriate. I've just bought two redcurrant canes from poundland - they're sprouting! But I can't put them out in this weather, surely? The label says to soak them for an hour before planting them in moist, well-cultivated soil. Hmmm. What I was thinking of doing was planting them in big pots of shop bought top soil or whatever it is, and sinking them into the ground where I've started to clear for the square foot gardening , so that the roots don't freeze during the night. And frankly, if it gets really cold again, I can overnight them in the porch, which is unheated and not terribly airtight, but at least it'll be warmer in there than outside in these deep frosts we've been getting.

Does that sound like a plan? i.e. plant them in pots, sink halfway into the ground and then only bring them in temporarily overnight if it gets mega cold?

Seakay

I think that they need to be outdoors, in which case ground would be better than pots as pots might freeze if we get more hard frosts etc.