What's eating my jostaberry?

Jostaberry (a gooseberry–blackcurrant hybrid) inherits pests from both parents. Gooseberry sawfly caterpillars are the most destructive, stripping plants bare. Aphids attack new shoot tips; gooseberry mildew can weaken plants. Big bud mite causes swollen dormant buds. Birds eat ripening berries. Monitor closely in spring when sawfly eggs hatch on lower leaves.

Caterpillars rapidly strip all leaves from inner branches outward; plants can be completely defoliated by June Check undersides of lower leaves for eggs from early April; pick off caterpillars by hand; spray with pyrethrum, spinosad, or fatty acid soap at first sighting

Puckered, reddish blistered areas on leaves; shoot tip distortion; honeydew Insecticidal soap or neem oil spray in early spring before populations build; encourage natural predators

Buds swell abnormally and fail to break in spring; can carry reversion virus Remove and bin swollen buds; replace heavily infected plants; no chemical control available to home gardeners

Ripening berries stripped before harvest Fruit cage or bird netting from fruit set; reflective bird-scarer tape