Venus currant

Introduction

Black currant - perhaps not a single personal plot can do without this culture. Venus currant is in great demand not only in our country, but also far beyond its borders, guaranteeing excellent quality fruits and shrubs, from some varieties of which you can make hedges. Currant has an excellent taste, and is also great for preparing various dishes and medicines that are used as traditional medicine. As a medicine, currant is incredibly useful due to the fact that in its berries and leaves it contains a large amount of vitamins and minerals, as well as trace elements that are very useful for the human body.

Today we are witnessing the growth of a variety of varieties and varieties of currants. From more than two hundred varieties, the gardener can choose the one that will be most suitable in accordance with his expectations and desires expressed about taste and external characteristics. It is worth paying attention to a fairly young, but already quite common variety of black currant, which is called Venus. This currant has a very large number of excellent useful properties and qualities that make it very popular. At the same time, the variety does not have significant drawbacks that could somehow reduce the significance of this variety.

Black currant Venus: variety description

Currant Venus: photo

The description of the Venus black currant variety should begin with a consideration of the characteristics of the shrub. Since the vital activity of the plant and its fruiting depend on the appearance of the shrub and on its properties, we will just dwell on this in more detail. So, Venus currant is not a very tall plant, which has an average density. It is moderately sprawling, but periodically gardeners recommend making sanitary or decorative pruning of shrubs so that they develop evenly.

The shoots on the shrub in a healthy state have delicate green flowers, are very strong, can bend slightly, which is a feature of the variety itself and is far from its pathology. The upper part of the shoots is usually pinkish. The buds are small, sharp, they usually do not press against the shoots, or they are pressed, but not close. Leaves are medium in size, green in color, generally of a standard shape typical of currants. The flowers, when they bloom, are small, light pinkish in color. They grow in small clusters, each with 9 to 11 single flowers, which bloom at the same time.

At the same time, the berries of the black currant of the Venus variety are very large, the mass of one berry can vary from 2.5 to 6 grams, depending on how old the shrub itself is, and whether the gardener himself was able to provide him with the most favorable conditions, which is also very important. Fruits are large, usually of the same size, deep black color. The taste is very sweet, it is almost impossible to determine the acidity in it. The skin of the fruit is very thin, so it is very difficult to store them for a long time or to transport them over long distances, and, perhaps, this is one of the few disadvantages that can affect the opinion of the gardener about whether to choose Venus for planting.

In general, the Venus currant is quite unique. It is very well suited for eating fresh currant fruits, and for preparing drinks, preserves and jams, desserts, adding berries to baked goods.It all depends solely on the preferences and imaginations of the gardener himself.

The Venera currant variety was obtained after breeders crossed the Finnish Bredthorp variety with a Siberian variety called Seyantsy Golubki. The variety was bred by the domestic breeder V.S. Ilyin, thanks to whom, already in 2004, the variety was zoned throughout the Ural region, where a rather harsh climate is noted. One way or another, but due to the fact that the variety is very resistant to temperature extremes, as well as frost, it began to spread very quickly across various regions of Russia. Also, the variety can be found in other countries where the climate is not distinguished by its stability and stability. This is usually the territory of Belarus, as well as in the Baltic States, where the climate can also be either very hot or incredibly cold, in which not all cultures successfully take root.

As we have already noted, the Venus currant variety is medium or medium late, it all depends only on the area where the bush is planted. It will not be possible to harvest all at once - you will have to do two or three tricks, since the berries ripen unevenly and at different times. Harvesting begins around mid-August, and can also be stretched depending on weather and temperature conditions, as well as the capabilities of the gardener himself. Winter hardiness is a huge plus of this variety, and we have already mentioned this. Venus can easily tolerate a drop in temperature down to minus 37 degrees, and even under these conditions the gardener may not even cover it, it will still perfectly tolerate this weather. The variety is self-fertile, there is no need to plant pollinators nearby, it does not require special attention to itself, it is not capricious in its care, in terms of growth. In addition, winter hardiness is also complemented by such quality as resistance to dangerous diseases common among currant crops - to mealy growth or anthracnose.

Venus currant variety: planting and caring for a shrub

Of course, it is important to outline the features of planting Venus currants and caring for it. You can take almost any place, the variety is very fond of humid areas, while swampy areas are immediately excluded. It is best to choose areas with fertile, loamy soil, currants very well adapt to it. Shrubs should not be planted where groundwater accumulates, as this can lead to decay of the root system. Venus is also quite calm about small shading, it will not harm the quality of the fruit in any way. It is for this reason that you can choose not only open areas, but also places that are located in partial shade.

Disembarkation is carried out either in the spring or in the fall. It should be borne in mind that with autumn planting, the survival rate of shrubs increases significantly. The soil should be prepared from August, and planting is done closer to September. The site must be carefully dug up and get rid of weeds. Fertilizers are also applied - rotted manure, superphosphate, potassium sulfate. These fertilizers perfectly saturate the soil and make it more fertile. In the same way, the planting holes themselves are then dug and processed, where shrubs will be planted. Their depth should be from half a meter, and their diameter is usually 60 centimeters. The top layer of the soil is mixed with peat or humus, wood ash and superphosphate, as well as potassium sulfate, are added there. Mix the mixture thoroughly and lay it on the bottom of the planting pit. Above it is best to add a little clean soil, all this is poured with very abundantly settled water. in this state, the pit should be left for about a week, after which the currant bushes of the Venus variety are placed there.

In the first one and a half to two years after the shrubs were planted in open ground, it is necessary to regularly loosen the soil, as well as water and weed the area around the bush, removing weeds.Even though shrubs are very drought-tolerant, they still love the moisture they bring in, so the grower needs to make sure that he is able to provide the plant with regular watering. During the season, it is necessary to very abundantly water the shrubs three to four times: at the very beginning of summer, in June; early July, then September and November when the season ends. One currant bush takes at least three buckets of water, this amount of moisture is quite enough to support the vital activity of the plant.

As soon as the fruiting process begins, it is necessary to start feeding the plant. In the spring, organic matter is great, but in the fall it is better to use phosphorus-containing and potassium fertilizers. In the spring, feeding is carried out after the flowering stage of the shrub has ended, but in the fall it is best to feed it after the currant crop has been harvested from the shrubs, and they are preparing to fall asleep.

Pruning is another important process when it comes to shrubs. The first pruning is necessary for the plant right at the time of its planting in open ground. In this case, all strong and viable branches and shoots should be shortened to four strong buds, and thin and small ones are completely removed without regret. The formation of the bush should be carried out over five years. An adult plant should contain no more than 15 main branches, then it will have enough energy received to ensure that these branches are completely healthy and give an excellent harvest.

After about six, sometimes seven years later, anti-aging pruning should be done. In the fall, all old branches and shoots are completely removed, as well as those that could become infected with any disease. It is also important to take into account that excessive thickening of the bush will not play a positive role for it, and the harvest will be even more difficult to completely remove from the bush. In addition, thickening can lead to a weakening of the plant and to the fact that the yield will noticeably decrease, and this will play a negative role.

Thus, observing all the rules of agricultural technology and care, you can achieve excellent results in growing Venus currants. The bushes are powerful, decorated and neat, it will be possible to completely harvest, and also get excellent and tasty berries. In addition, the plant is very resistant to diseases and pests. But still, we cannot ignore the description of possible dangers and risks that are always present in horticultural activities and, in particular, in the cultivation of fruit and berry crops.

Venus currant: the most common diseases and pests

Currant Venus: photo

The Venus currant, as experienced gardeners emphasize, is almost never affected by such common diseases as powdery mildew and anthracnose. Also, rust is not terrible for bushes. But nevertheless, shrubs are very susceptible to other diseases, among which are septoria, as well as attacks from the kidney mite.

Septoria is also called white spot - it is a fairly common fungus among currant crops. The first signs appear as small overgrowing spots that have brown edges. A little later, currant leaves begin to become covered with small dots of dark color, then they dry up and fall off. But there are several methods of dealing with the disease that are quite effective. First, it is necessary to collect all the affected leaves in time and burn them in order to prevent the transfer of the disease to the still healthy parts of the plant. Secondly, the bush should be treated with a solution of copper sulfate or copper oxychloride diluted in water in accordance with the volumes indicated in the instructions.

Also, for the prevention of diseases, it is necessary to spray the leaves with Bordeaux liquid.Spraying is carried out about four times in one season - before the flowering process of shrubs begins; immediately after the plant has bloomed; two weeks after the last spraying of the bushes; after the harvest was taken from the bushes. For prevention, you can use the treatment with a solution of potassium permanganate, but you should also not forget that the timely application of mineral and organic fertilizers plays a very important role. Thanks to them, the plant's immunity is enhanced, and this leads to the fact that the fight against diseases becomes even more effective.

Fighting a tick is also not difficult. In order to prevent or prevent the appearance of a tick, you can plant several beds of garlic or onions next to the currant bush so that the smells scare away the pest. If the tick nevertheless appeared, then the shoots that were affected by it are immediately cut off and destroyed. At the beginning of flowering, the bush is best sprayed with a garlic solution.

In general, Venus currant is an excellent option for gardeners who do not have the opportunity to regularly care for the plant, but still want to get a decent and bountiful harvest. The advantages of the variety are as follows:

• frost resistance and resistance to temperature extremes
• yield - up to four kilograms of ideal and tasty berries can be harvested from one bush
• drought resistance (but, again, here you should also know the measure and not allow the soil to dry out and, accordingly, the root system dry out)
• very large berries that have exclusively dessert characteristics and are suitable for preparing a large number of sweet drinks and dishes
• resistance to diseases and pests common among currant crops
• self-fertility property

If we talk about the shortcomings, then there is still a high probability that the plant can tolerate septoria and attacks from the kidney mite, which negatively affects the level of yield. So you should keep in mind all the technologies in preventive measures to combat these pests and diseases, and then you can get an excellent result.