Anna Ralphs Gooseberry May 2026

The seeds are on their way to the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst, UK. While seeds that old rarely germinate (gooseberry seeds have a notoriously short viability), there is a non-zero chance.

In mid-19th century Britain, gooseberries were not the tart, ignored fruit they are today. They were the focus of fierce competition. The "Gooseberry Show" circuit was the equivalent of modern dog shows, where growers vied for prizes based on berry weight and smoothness. There were hundreds of named cultivars: ‘London’, ‘Roaring Lion’, ‘Whitesmith’. anna ralphs gooseberry

If they sprout, the will return from the dead. It will be a living testament to a 19th-century woman who valued flavor over size, and sweetness over shelf-life. The seeds are on their way to the

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." They were the focus of fierce competition