This is the time when the leaves of your gooseberry bushes are shredded into doilies by the tiny caterpillars of the gooseberry sawfly, which rear up into a fearsome S-shape as you approach. They're easy enough to kill by spraying with a contact insecticide, but consider this. You eat the fruit, not the leaves. The loss of foliage reduces the vigour of the shoots and makes the fruit easier to locate. The creatures don't harm the fruit and only attack gooseberry bushes. Should we just live and let live? You decide.
* Follow Country Life on Twitter
-
Dawn Chorus: A Blue Plaque for Marc Bolan, holidaying in the Caribbean with Francis Ford Coppola and a history of the National Gallery in 25 picturesPlus the best of the property pages, and how the railways will save the countryside.
-
Game, set, match: 12 of the world’s most beautiful tennis courtsFrom Italy to Indonesia, when it comes to hotel amenities, a picturesque tennis court will always trump a 24-hour gym. So, before you book your next holiday, take a look at our pick of the 12 best.
