How many times over the last 7 years have I gone up the allotments in May or June, only to be greeted by an indignant plot holder whose gooseberries have all disappeared overnight... Well, it's happened at least 7 times; it is a regular, annual occurrence.
Now I like gooseberries as much as the next person, and grow them myself. But why (I always think) do people reckon the thief is a human ? Of all the things in the allotment, surely only someone with a deranged appetite would nick gooseberries, rather than strawberries, or raspberries at that time of year ? (nobody has ever come up to me in that same period, and said all their strawberries have gone).
There are a couple of much more likely explanations. Firstly there is a period in May when gooseberries need thinning out. If you don't, they will thin themselves, and often a lot will drop off, of their own accord, and you see them on the ground neatly under the bush... At least for 24 hours that is, until blackbirds, pigeons, or even rats strike gold and wolf the lot (if I am not mixing my animal metaphors). The second is simply that pigeons or magpies will steadily work through the bushes and take everything. And they will do it very early in the morning before you or I get up (but probably not before the chairman who will be out clearing a ditch or something).
So the answer - as with many things on the allotment - is net them. Just make sure you peg the net down otherwise one pigeon will lift it up, while the other pops underneath for his snack !
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