IflG SYSTEMATIC rOMOLOGY 



been derived chiefly from the type form. AVhih' cultivated 

 somewhat on the continent, this fruit l)ch)n|^s almost wholly to 

 Great Britain, where several hundred varieties liave been intro- 

 duced in England, AVales, Scotland, and Ireland. There are but 

 few places in America where the species thrives, as the climate 

 is uncongenial and the gooseberry mildew proves a veritable 

 scourge. There are now, however, a number of hybrids between 

 this species and the American gooseberry which promise much 

 for pomology. 



291. History of the European gooseberry. — The gooseberry 

 is not mentioned by ancient agricultural writers, and seems 

 first to have come into prominence as a cultivated plant in Eng- 

 land. Tusser, the farmer-poet, mentioned it in 1557. Turner, 

 the English herbalist, wrote of it in 1573; as did Gerard in 

 1597 ; and Parkinson, in 1629, named eight varieties. For the 

 last two hundred years, the gooseberry seems to have been the 

 fruit of fruits in England, and many societies have been or- 

 ganized to bring it to its best estate, and many voluminous 

 articles and books have been devoted to its culture. 



