No fruit on gooseberry bushes

[ladybug]

I have two bushed one a pink thorn less. Neither produced fruit this year,last year there was a poor showing. There is a lot of growth and leaves. The bushes are two years old.I put mulch on them at the end of last season after pruning. In my other garden the bush produced fruit but the leaves are getting stripped. Any suggestions for either or bot gardens?

[Lesley Jay]

Hi Ladybug, the usual culprit when gooseberry bushes are stripped is the gooseberry sawfly larvae which you find under the leaves. Could the birds have pinched the buds and the fruit? Maybe try putting a net over the bushes next year.

[ladybug]

Thanks for replying, I don't recall seeing any flowers let alone small fruit, just lots of leaf and stem growth.
Is there anything I can do ready for next year to improve my chances?

Cheers

[JerremyB]

Do they seem to be growing well? If the plant is strugling it can sometimes not make any fruit. Perhaps give it some fertilizer with some fresh soil next year?