Watering currants: watering secrets

In order to harvest a rich harvest from a currant bush every year, it is necessary to properly care for it, namely, water, feed, loosen, protect from diseases and insects on time. All stages of care are very important for the growth and development of the bush, but sometimes it is the correct watering of the currants that contributes to a good harvest. Today in the article we will tell you the basic rules for watering this shrub. How to water properly? How many times to water during the whole season?

Watering currants

To get large and tasty berries, currants need to be watered throughout the entire growing period. The soil should be moist to a depth of 15 cm, but not waterlogged. Watering is necessary only when the shrub needs it, i.e. when the soil starts to dry out. Otherwise, there is a risk of ruining the roots. In excessively waterlogged soil, the roots rot. Basically water the currants four times per season.

· The first watering must be carried out when the ovary begins to set on the bush. This is around the end of May.

· The second watering is carried out when the berries begin to ripen on the bush.

· The third time we moisten the soil after the whole crop has been harvested.

· And the last, fourth, at the beginning of October, this is how we prepare the currants for winter. Since moist soil better protects roots from cold weather than dry soil.

If it rains during the setting or pouring of fruits, or after harvesting, then of course you do not need to water. Remember to water only dried up soil.

Watering currants: how to water

Agronomists believe that the most optimal moisture for a currant bush is sprinkling. With this method, both the roots of the plant and the bush itself receive the required amount of water. Water is evenly distributed in the soil without stagnation. For this method, you need to purchase any device in a specialized gardening store that will fix on the watering hose and spray water evenly.

You can also do without buying an expensive device, and take a simple plastic bottle with a volume of at least 10 liters. Make many holes in it with a hot awl. Then put it on the watering hose, fix it with a clamp or tape so that it does not fly off from the pressure of the water and that's it, the sprinkler for irrigating the site is ready.

Very often, gardeners water in a simpler and less costly way, namely, they water the currants under the bush directly from the watering hose. Such watering is dangerous for the plant, since the water from the hose is usually cold, and this can lead to hypothermia of the roots and, as a result, the plant will begin to hurt, and may even die. Remember to pour cold water on currants in no case!

If you are comfortable with a simple way of watering currants, not sprinkling, then use warm, settled water. Since the currants need to be watered only four times per season, I think it will not be difficult for you to collect a bucket of water in the morning, put it to warm and settle in the sun. And it is better to use warm rainwater for irrigation, and not from the tap, then it can not be defended.

When watering, you need to make sure that the water gets into the soil near the bush, and not just flows by. To do this, a small groove is pulled out along the perimeter of the currant crown, the depth of which is no more than 6-7 cm. It is into this groove that water is gradually poured, not all at once. Simultaneously with watering, mineral or organic fertilizers can be added to the groove, and then they will definitely get to the roots of the plant.

Some gardeners make something like mini-dams from boards and bricks.That is, they are installed around the currant bush in order to direct the water in the right direction, under the bush. But building such ladies is difficult, difficult and time-consuming, and the result will be exactly the same as simply digging a ditch around.

The required amount of water for watering currants

Currant is a moisture-loving plant, it loves abundant watering, but it does not tolerate stagnant water either. Therefore, you need to water this plant competently and slowly.

If you spray water only over the surface, then only the surface layer of the earth will be wet. The roots of the plant, which are deep in the soil, will not receive additional water, but the weeds, on the contrary, will flourish on your site in lush color. Strong watering is also not good, as you can fill in the roots, and they will begin to rot, and the whole plant will hurt.

Here are some guidelines for proper watering.

· Before watering, the soil must be thoroughly loosened. Loosening the soil, you let oxygen to the roots, just as when watering, the loosened soil will absorb the soil better, and the water will not stagnate on the surface. Particularly loosening before watering is needed for heavy soils, for example, clay, loam. Simultaneously with loosening, you can see how many centimeters in depth the earth has dried.

· If the soil is dry to a depth of more than 15 cm, then the currant bush needs good moisture. For irrigation, you need at least 30-40 liters of water.

· If the soil is dry to a depth of about 10 cm, then 15-20 liters will be enough for irrigation.

· But if the moist soil begins already from 5 cm deep, then you do not need to water the currants, otherwise the earth will be waterlogged.

Watering the plant is part of the job; you want the soil to retain moisture for as long as possible. And for this you need to use a proven method of mulching. Those. spread mulch around the bush on top of the soil. You can use both organic mulch (rotted sawdust, straw, needles, compost, fallen leaves, peat) and inorganic (agrofibre, spunbond, etc.). Any kind of mulch will help retain moisture and will also help fight weeds. In addition, under organic mulch, the soil remains loose for a long time and air circulation is not disturbed, which is not unimportant for the normal growth of the root system.

Watering currants: effective ways

Many gardeners in early spring water the currant bush with boiling water. With this procedure, they kill colonies of parasitic insects that hibernate in the soil, near the roots of the plant, and a large number of fungi and bacteria that cause serious diseases are neutralized with boiling water. In addition, such a shower is also useful for the plant because it helps to wake up the currants after hibernation. You need to water the bush with hot water at the end of March, while the buds have not yet awakened on the currants.

Watering currants with boiling water, according to reviews of many gardeners and gardeners, really brings results. The culture wakes up faster, during the entire growing season it gets sick less and is less exposed to attacks of insect pests.

Boiling water, of course, is better to use only once in early spring; in summer and autumn, you need to water the bush with warm (not hot) clean water.

There are a few tried and true tricks to watering your plant as efficiently as possible.

1. A couple of days before the planned watering, fill up a barrel of water and leave it to heat up.

2. Before watering, remove the layer of old mulch, weed well and loosen the soil around the bush.

3. It is necessary to water the plant only late in the evening, when the sun has already disappeared, in order to avoid burning the leaves. The root system will absorb water overnight.

4. After watering, feed the currants. So you will kill two birds with one stone and water and fertilize.

5. As mentioned above, on average, currants need to be watered four times, but if the summer is too dry, then the number of waterings can be increased. Most importantly, always check at what depth the soil is moist before watering.

That's all the information we wanted to share with you. Follow the basic rules for watering. Do not overmoisten the soil, do not water it during the day and with cold water. Always test the soil for moisture. If you follow these simple rules, then your bush will annually delight you with a rich harvest of large, tasty berries.