Fruit ripening early this year?

[jennym]

Does anyone else think that their fruit is ripening earlier this year than in previous years? I have finished the strawberries virtually, finished the redcurrants, the tayberries and blackcurrants are ripening now, and the gooseberries look almost ready too.
Used the last of my blackcurrants from the freezer the other week and the bag was marked end July 2005.

[jennym]

[moonbells]

Yikes - I wish mine were! My rasps were pickable on June 26th last year, I reckon this year I've at least another 2 weeks (and the flipping summer show's Saturday - no mixed berries for me!). Early redcurrants are going red, late ones aren't and blackberries are only just flowering.

Blueberries need netting soon, as they are approaching the right size to start changing colour and getting pinched by the blackbirds.

Gooseberries are going ripe though. But again a fortnight later than last year, as I remember taking a carrierbagful to BBC GW live for Dad and this year he only got a few really hard green ones.

moonbells

[Mrs Ava]

Wow Jen, I am weeks behind you!  The strawbs on the allotment have finished but the ones at home still have a good 2 or 3 pickings yet.  The redcurrants are just starting, but will be better in another week.  The gooseberrys are like bullet and won't be ready for another month or more - I never pick mine until August.  Blackcurrants are just turning but are way of and the jostaberries are still green so a month off yet.  As for the blackberries, tayberries and brambles, mine are all only just coming into flower.  I don't expect to see fruit for 6 weeks!

[Rhys]

Strawberries have finished.
Redcurrants have finsihed.
Gooseberries have finished.
Blackcurrants have finished.

Raspberries have started.
Will start picking blueberries this weekend.

V. early this year ;)

[Svea]

it's early on our plots, too

some guys have already tired of their homegrown strawbs and i get the benefit = surplus off them :)

my raspberries have started with a vengance - i am not complaining. plenty of tiny green fruit on it yet so will be cropping for a good while yet.

the gooseberries are half done, i reckon. some have already fallen off the bush and some others i picked because they were about to. i have a dark red variety - though dont know which.

[Curryandchips]

My very limited supply of strawberries has finished (lots more next year hopefully though). Never got to taste my gooseberries, they suddenly disappeared before I even netted them. Had a couple of tayberries, this is the first year, so only a few fruit.

Everything certainly appears to be early ...

[amphibian]

Strawberries have been in harvest for 3 weeks.
Tayberries have been in harvest for 1 week.
Blueberries have been in harvest for 1 week.
Raspberries are miles off.
Blackberries are miles off.
Gooseberries are miles off.
Currants are miles off.

[Robert_Brenchley]

A lot of my gooseberries dropped off the bushes, doubtless thanks to the drought, so that could be it.

[glow777]

we picked our first strawbs today but we are to eweks behind you southeners!
a few curaants are starting to show their true colours but thats about it so far

[Tee Gee]

I don't keep tabs on mine as such, other than to say I use Wimbledon as my yardstick, and as always I was eating Strawberries when the tournament started, meaning I am on time.

The Currants are on the turn, plenty of Gooseberries but haven't checked them for ripeness yet.

Lost my rasberries last year to disease and have had nothing on my new canes as expected,fingers crossed for next year.

[Wicker]

Here in Edinburgh am getting regular pickings of strawberries.  the raspberries are providing enough for a picking each day and there are loads still to ripen.  Redcurrants starting to colour but the blackcurrants aren't so far on tho it looks like being a very heavy crop.

Am trying Cape Goosberries for the first time and the plants look fine with flowers on - but of course there is a long way to go yet.