Is it the weight of the fruit that's bending them over? You don't want to prune until they have fruited or you won't get anything.

At this time of year you do a different prune from the winter one which is done end of Feb-early March depending on the weather.. In June you shorten all the laterals, ie the side branches that come off the main stems - take them back to about the bottom 3 -5 leaves. The idea is to keep the centre of the bush open.There will be no fruit on these as they are all this year's growth. Don't shorten the main stems that are bending over unless they are actually touching the ground, when you could remove the very ends if you want to but I'd leave them.

It's just as well I don't grow fruit and veg, Stera!

Its a mistake you'd only make once and that's how we learn...
I just love gooseberries.

Gooseberry wine is the best. I used to buy it from a small local vineyard in Newent when we lived down that way. Eventually I had to stop drinking it as it became too acidic for me. Shame.

There used to be a little song that started "The goose gets giddy on gooseberry wine!"

Tried wine making years ago but eventually decided that the secret of good wine is grapes. The only drinkable one we ever achieved was apple, and it was so nice we saved it for a special occasion - but it didn't keep so it was all wasted. I prefer crumbles and fools, and handfuls of ripe ones in the garden...

You could try reducing the acid content before adding the yeast and sugar - just use a little bicarbonate of soda and wait for the froth to subside. It certainly works for rhubarb and doesn't affect the taste.

I didn't make the wine. I bought it from a vineyard but it was really scrumptious stuff.