In the United States, gooseberries were caught in the crossfire of White Pine Blister Rust control. A federal ban forced farmers to destroy Ribes plants. Many European heirlooms never made the transatlantic journey, and those that did were lost to the axe.
In 2018, a promising development occurred. A retiree in Cornwall named Geoffrey Hanks claimed to have found a bush growing behind a derelict bothy (a basic cottage) on the edge of Bodmin Moor. The berries matched the description: "pink-gold, hairless, sweet." anna ralphs gooseberry
Excitement was palpable. DNA analysis was attempted, but unfortunately, the plant turned out to be a mislabeled ‘Leveller’—a good gooseberry, but not the Anna. If you are an heirloom hunter and you miraculously locate a cutting of an authentic Anna Ralphs, or if a nursery finally manages to micropropagate a surviving specimen, here is how you would treat it. In the United States, gooseberries were caught in