Currant

The currant belongs to the gooseberry family. By itself, this species unites almost 200 plants. Currants have a rare history among other crops, and among gardeners they are especially popular. There is a currant plant in almost every garden. Besides the common black currant, people very often grow red, golden and white currants. But of all types of currants, black is considered the most useful. Black currant berries are eaten both fresh and actively used in preparations for the winter. And also black currant is actively used in pharmacology and often various medicines are made on its basis.

Currant plant: complete information

plant currant

The currant plant is a perennial shrub that, depending on the variety, can have a different shape. It can also grow in height from 1 to 2 meters. Depending on the age, the currant bush can be from bright green to brown.

Each currant bush gives young shoots every year, and the root system can grow up to half a meter in depth. The leaves of the bush can grow from 3 cm to 12 cm, it also depends on the variety and age of the bush.

The currant plant begins to bloom at the end of May, and bears fruit from the end of July. After planting, the bush begins to bear fruit from the second year of life. Currants are very useful and rich in vitamin C, so they are in great demand by gardeners.

Currant plant. The best time to plant

What time is the best time to plant currants, interests of many gardeners, especially inexperienced ones. Currants generally grow longer than all horticultural crops. The very next year after planting, the currant begins to bear fruit if the currant bush is properly cared for.

Also, depending on the care, the currant plant can grow and actively bear fruit in one place, without requiring a transplant for more than 15 years. It is best to plant currant bushes in open ground in the fall. Although planting can be done in the spring.

For transplanting, it is best to use a two-year-old seedling that already has a fully developed root system. Before planting, the seedling must be carefully examined, because it must be strong and healthy.

The area for currants should be sunny and completely protected from drafts and wind. Best of all, the currant plant loves non-acidic soil. But if there is still acidic soil on your site, then this can be easily corrected by adding ordinary lime to it.

This should always be done in advance, preferably during the preparation of the site for currants. Also for this, superphosphate granules and organic matter, as well as potassium sulfate, are introduced into the ground. The earth is always dug to the depth of the bayonet bayonet.

If you decide to plant currant bushes in the fall, then the width of the hole should be about half a meter and the depth about 40 cm. And the distance between the bushes should be at least 1.5 meters. On one bush you need to mix and pour 100 grams of superphosphate and 1 bucket of humus, as well as 50 grams of potassium chloride.

On top of these fertilizers, it is imperative to pour a layer of earth about 10 cm.This is done so that the roots of the bush do not get burned. You need to prepare a pit for currants in advance before planting. The sooner the better, at least 2 weeks before planting.

This must be done in order for the earth in the pit to settle well.

When planting a bush, be sure to keep in mind that the seedling must be lowered into the hole at an angle.But the root collar of the seedling should be no deeper than 5 cm in the ground. When planting, you need to handle the roots carefully, carefully straightening them.

How actively new root shoots and young shoots will grow depends on how correctly you handle the roots of the plant when planting. It directly depends on planting how your shrub will develop and grow in the future.

When the seedling is already set in the ground, it must be just as carefully covered with earth and well tamped. And after that, the seedling needs to be well watered with warm water. After this watering, in order not to form a crust, it is best to mulch the ground around the bush. In the case of currants, humus is best suited for this.

After planting and watering, it is imperative to cut off the shoots of the seedling 15 cm from the ground, but you should definitely look at the buds of the plant. Each cut off seedling should have at least 4, and preferably 5 buds.

Also, the cut off parts of the shoots can be stuck into damp ground, there is a high probability that they will be able to take root, and later grow into a full-fledged bush.

If you decide that the best time for planting is spring, then keep in mind that this can only be done as a last resort. And you need to have time to carry out all the plantings before the sap flow begins and the kidneys have not yet opened.

In the spring, it is very difficult to determine the correct time for planting currant bushes. The period of spring planting depends precisely on the fact that the currant bush starts growing very early, one might say in early spring.

But the earth at this time still does not have time to properly warm up and, accordingly, there is no point in planting currants at this time, because it simply will not take root. Spring planting is perfect only in one case, if the pit prepared in the fall simply did not have time to settle.

Currant plant: proper care in spring, summer and autumn

The currant plant does not require too much attention to itself. Care should be started in the spring... Initially, you need to prune, remove all damaged and affected branches almost to the ground.

You also need to dig in a bush and fill this place with humus or manure.

During flowering, the bush needs to be watered regularly and abundantly all the time.

It is imperative to loosen the earth, but the depth should be no more than 10 cm. Also, thanks to this, the weed will grow less, and if the earth is loosened and mulched, then you can practically forget about weeding.

Every spring, the currant plant needs sanitary pruning in order to properly form the growth and shape of the bush.

Every spring, currant bushes need to be sprayed against possible pests and diseases.

At a time when currant bushes begin to bloom, they must be carefully examined, and if you see double flowers, then they must be removed. And if there are a lot of such flowers on the bush, then it needs to be dug out of the ground and burned.

The first spring feeding should be done with fertilizers with a high nitrogen content.

Summer the main care for currants should be regular and high-quality watering. Weeding should also always be done on time, the bushes should not be overgrown. In the summer, you need to feed with organic fertilizers.

Apply all fertilizers to wet soil, and after application, water the bushes. If any pests were noticed on the currant bushes, then you need to immediately carry out the processing. But the use of any chemistry is simply prohibited almost a month before the berry ripens.

At this time, chemistry can be replaced with folk methods and remedies. Basically, the berry does not ripen evenly, and the ripe berry begins to fall off about a week after ripening. That is why harvesting is done selectively, ripe berries are removed, and the rest is left to ripen.

After the harvest is complete, the bushes must be watered. But after watering, you need to immediately loosen the ground.

The last feeding is carried out in the fall - at the end of September.At this time, organic and mineral fertilizers must be applied to the ground. And also at this time, pruning and formation of bushes is carried out. Planting and transplanting bushes should also take place at this time.

If there is too little rain in the fall, then watering should be continued. It is also necessary to carry out prevention against diseases and pests.

And it is imperative to do this in the fall precisely because many pests can easily overwinter in the bark of a plant or in the ground, so the soil is also dug around the bush to a depth of 10 cm.

Currant. Description of the plant and general care of it

plant currant

The healthier and more powerful the currant plant, the less likely it will get sick with any disease. But anyway prevention you need to carry out. Inexperienced gardeners are always interested in the question of how to process currant bushes so that they remain healthy.

It should be borne in mind that along with the buds in the spring, pests and diseases also wake up, which easily survived the winter. Therefore, the most effective solution for processing is Bordeaux mixture, Karbofos or Copper sulfate.

These solutions can be replaced with Nitrafen, but they must be used strictly according to the instructions.

Also, in the spring, the shrub must be cleaned of last year's grass and loose leaves, since there is a high probability that the pests also endured the winter there. By the way, the treatment with drugs is carried out after the spring harvest.

If winter was snowy, then spring watering should be carried out less often than after a little snowy winter. After a snowy winter, too much moisture remains in the ground, and when there was little snow, the bushes simply need food.

At a time when the fruits are tied and begin to pour, watering the currants is needed more than ever. If during this period of development of currants there is a drought, then you need to water the bushes every few days and only with warm water.

The bush should be soaked half a meter deep. Watering the plant also needs to be done correctly, that is, strictly under the plant bush. You can also dig small trenches around the bush so that water certainly does not get on the leaves.

If the drought is in the fall, then abundant winter watering is needed. Most of all watering requires black currants, but red and white ones require much less moisture.

If, before planting, all the necessary fertilizers, then the next 2 years it is not necessary to feed the currants. But already in the third year, it will be necessary to periodically apply all the necessary fertilizers.

For the first time, spring feeding is carried out with fertilizer, which contains as much nitrogen as possible. This is mainly done with urea; a young bush requires 50 grams of fertilizer. But for a bush that is 4 years old and older, only 20 grams of fertilizer is needed, but feeding must already be done twice a season.

That is, feed 1 time with urea, then add organic fertilizer, manure, chicken droppings, compost, etc. You can also add up to 20 grams of potassium sulphide and up to 50 grams of superphosphate. It is necessary to repeat these particular dressings every spring.

In order for your currant bushes to always be healthy, have good immunity from diseases and pests, and also give a large harvest, breeders recommend make 3 foliar dressings from June to July.

To do this, you need to prepare a special nutrient solution, which includes: 5 grams of potassium manganese, 3 grams of boric acid and 35 grams of copper sulfate. Each ingredient must be diluted separately in a small amount of water, and then diluted all together in one bucket of warm water.

Spraying the bushes should be carried out in cloudy weather, or in the evening when there is no longer the scorching sun, as well as the wind.

Every spring, it is simply necessary to carry out pruning bush. At this time, all broken, diseased and weakened branches after winter are cut off. This makes it easier for the bush to develop further, and it gives its strength only to healthy branches.

It is also necessary to cut off all branches that have already turned 6 years old, they are simply no longer needed, because a larger number of ovaries are formed on 4 and 5-year-old branches. All weak and dry branches are necessarily pruned.

If you prune the bush regularly and on time, then black currant bushes can live and actively bear fruit for up to 20 years. As for the red currant, the procedures are the same, but at the same time it lives a little less, up to 15 years.

Every fall, when the foliage is already falling, pruning is also necessary. If in the spring only those branches that have not endured the winter are cut off, and in the summer they carry out young shoots, then in the fall the pruning must be carried out thoroughly.

Give the bush the desired shape, remove excess young shoots and cut out all old branches.

Pruning is always more thorough in the fall. First, after the autumn planting of the seedling, the branches are cut up to 15 cm from the ground. And in the second year of life from this bush, you need to choose up to 5 of the strongest branches, and cut the rest without regret.

For 3 years and further, up to 6 young shoots are left, which are larger and stronger than the rest, while the extra ones are simply cut out. In order for your bush to develop properly and give a decent harvest, do not allow the bush to be too thick.

It is for this that all weak branches are cut out, and 2-3-year-old branches are cut so that about 4 buds remain on them. If the pruning procedure is carried out correctly and on time, then by the age of 4 the currant bush will be completely and correctly formed.

And all that remains for you in the future is just a cut of old branches. Trimming red and white currants is not very different from black. Currant pruning should be done in early spring, although in exactly the same way as for black currant.

But you do not need to pinch and cut off young shoots. For red and white, only those branches that are older than 7 years are cut. And as for young shoots, you can cut out only the extra shoots.

Reproduction of currants

For propagation of currants, arcuate layers are very often used, and even more often green or stiff cuttings. Two-year-old branches, which are simply cut off from the bush, are also well suited for reproduction.

These methods are perfect for black currants, but it is better not to propagate red by cuttings. Layers are most suitable for breeding red currants.

As for growing currant bushes from seeds, it is simply unrealistic to do this on a regular site, you don't even need to spend your time and energy on it. Only breeders are engaged in this method, because this is a very complex and long process that can take more than one year.

Currants can be propagated both green and woody cuttings... Wood cuttings are used much more often than green ones because they can be prepared for future planting absolutely at any time.

Cuttings can be planted not only in the fall, but also in the spring. Experienced gardeners recommend that beginners harvest cuttings for planting during the first frost. The length of the cutting for planting should be up to 20 cm long and up to 1 cm thick.

It is recommended to cut off cuttings from the middle of 3 summer branches. But in order to prevent all moisture from evaporating from the cut cuttings during storage before planting and they do not disappear, the place where the cuttings are cut must be covered with garden pitch. This must be done both on the bush and on the cutting itself.

After that, the cuttings must be wrapped one by one in damp paper and put in a plastic bag and put all this in a cold place. In early spring, cuttings need to be taken out and planted in the beds.

They are planted in the same way as seedlings under a slope, and the distance between the cuttings should be about 20 cm, and the width should be the same. But when you plant a cutting, the place that you previously covered with garden pitch must be cut off at an angle.

After planting, the cuttings must be watered and mulched abundantly. For this, you can use anything you like, and peat, and sawdust, and humus, etc.e. It is best to put arcs above the bed with cuttings and cover it with foil.

The film is removed only when leaves appear on the cuttings. All this time, the garden needs to be watered regularly and make sure that the ground does not dry out. Throughout the summer, cuttings need to be watered, weeded and fed with mullein.

Soon the cuttings will turn into seedlings and with the onset of autumn, the strongest are transplanted to a permanent place, and those seedlings that turned out to be weak should be left in the garden until next fall.

To root currants green cuttings, need a greenhouse. Cuttings should only be cut from properly developed shoots and the top of the shoot cannot be rooted. The green stalk must be cut no more than 15 cm long and must have at least two leaves.

In order for the cuttings to have roots, they need to be put in a small container with water for a while until the roots grow at least 2 cm long.After they have formed roots, the cuttings must be planted in bags.

But do not forget to make holes in the bottom of the bags so that when watering, excess liquid can easily come out. Watering the cuttings with such a planting only needs to be done once every 2 days. And 10 days after planting, watering should be reduced to 1 time per week.

The cuttings should be at home on the windowsill until May, at which time they grow up to half a meter. In May, the cuttings are transplanted into open ground 15 cm deeper than they originally grew in the bag. The roots of the plant must be completely in the ground, so when transplanting, the bag just needs to be cut.

The currant bush is even easier to propagate simply layering... With this type of planting, the root system of the bush will be fully formed within a year after transplanting. In order to transplant layers, you need to choose a branch that is already 2 years old.

It should be absolutely healthy, and from the bush, this branch should grow at an angle. Under this branch, you need to make a furrow no more than 10 cm deep, and the branch itself must be carefully bent and laid there.

But it must be remembered that the top of the branch must be above the ground, and the branch itself must be fixed in the ground. Layers in the ground need to be watered periodically. This is done so that the root system gets stronger by the fall, and the seedling itself is fully developed.

After the layering is ready, it must be cut off from an adult bush and transplanted to a permanent place.

The main diseases of currant plants

Currants often have the same diseases and pests as other garden bushes. Most often, the disease appears when the wrong care is taken for the shrub.

The currant plant most often suffers from diseases such as:

Anthractosis - with this disease, convex brown spots appear on currant leaves. Over time, they increase and quickly join together, which is why the leaves simply dry out and fall off. The disease begins to spread from the bottom of the bush and gradually creeps higher.

Septoriasis - with this disease, round brown spots first appear on the leaf, gradually they brighten and whiten, and a brown border remains around the spot itself. Gradually, this disease can also affect the berry.

Goblet rust Is a fungal disease. On the leaves of the currant appear orange peculiar “pads” in which the fungus is located, which develops rapidly.

Terry - with this disease, purple double flowers appear on the bush. Also, on young layers, the leaves darken and stretch. Gradually, all the foliage on the bush darkens, and it loses its aroma and stops fruiting.

Gray rot - this disease affects many plants. Initially, brown spots appear on the leaves, which gradually affect the wood as well. The bush begins to wither and gradually disappears altogether.

Columnar rust - with this disease, small yellow spots appear on the leaves, and growths appear on the opposite side of the leaf. In these growths, spores of the fungus sit, which over time infect the entire bush, destroying it.

Necrosis of stems and branches - with this disease, the bark of the plant becomes too dry, gradually cracks and dries up. Accordingly, the bush dies very quickly.

Striped mosaic - this disease very often spreads in the summer. At the same time, a kind of yellow pattern appears around the veins on the leaf.

Powdery mildew - this disease affects many plants in gardens. A white bloom appears on the leaves and fruits, it gradually moves to another stage and becomes a brown film, after which the fruits simply begin to rot.

Nectric necrosis - this disease most often occurs in red and white currants. The branches of the bush with this disease simply dry up. This is a viral disease, which is not always possible to get rid of. This is because 100% of the cure for it has not yet been invented.

And if you do not start to treat this disease in time, then you can easily lose half of the bushes in one season. Therefore, it is best to carry out prevention and with proper care, the disease practically does not appear.

Also for the prevention of this disease, the most effective drugs are: Bordeaux liquid, Copper sulfate, Nitrafen and Karbofos. Spraying with these solutions of these preparations should be carried out in early spring before flowering and in autumn after harvest.

The main pests of currants

Also, currants have insect pests. Because of them, you can easily lose not only the seasonal harvest, but also completely your bushes.

Pale-footed sawfly - these are caterpillars that completely eat up the foliage, leaving only the veins. And accordingly, if there is no foliage, then there will be no berries.

Biennial leaf beetle - these are caterpillars that harm not only the fruits, but also the buds of the bush, eating them completely. This pest appears not only on currants, but also on other berry bushes.

Yellow sawfly - these caterpillars completely eat up all the foliage. The priority for this insect is white and red currants.

Fire - if this pest has infected your plants, then the berries begin to sing very quickly and dry up just as quickly right on the bush. To prevent this pest from starting on your site, it is best to carry out prevention, because it will be quite difficult to get rid of it.

Sprout aphid - this pest is also an insect, it draws juices from the plant through the leaves. At the same time, they begin to quickly curl and dry, the shoots grow curved, or even stop growing altogether.

The bush stops in its development, over time, completely affected by aphids. If you do not get rid of it during the time, then you can remain completely without currants. And also aphids very quickly infect all plants in the garden. And given the stages of its development, it will easily get to neighboring areas.

Moth - this is a butterfly, the caterpillars of which completely eat up the foliage of not only white and red but black currants.

Red-gall and gall aphids - this insect in just one season can give up to 7 generations of offspring. Basically, this pest settles on white and red currants. From this insect, the bush turns yellow, the leaves begin to curl, begin to swell and gradually fall off.

Spider mite Is an insect that can harm not only red and black currants, but also other tasty and healthy berries. When a bush is affected by a tick, the leaves become marbled in color, begin to dry out and fall off.

Kidney mite - this pest gnaws the buds of the bush, and settling in them easily tolerates the winter, and in the spring it begins to eat them away completely.

Glass-maker - these caterpillars are easily able to get inside the branches of the bush and completely eat them out from the inside. Accordingly, after this, the bush immediately dies.

Gall midges - these pests have three types: Shoots - they eat away the branches of the bush from the inside.

Floral - these insects appear during flowering and feed on buds. After which the buds turn yellow and dry out.

Leafy - this type of insect gnaws holes in young leaves. Moreover, when these insects hit the berries, they, in turn, change their shape. You need to start fighting this insect at the moment when they just appeared.

To get rid of it, there are many both folk remedies and chemicals. You can also rid your currant bushes of this insect by carrying out prevention. Processing currant bushes in spring and autumn with copper sulfate or Bordeaux mixture.

Currant plant. Types, varieties and their description

The currant plant has a wide variety of varieties, they are divided into: early ripening, mid-early, mid-ripening, mid-late and late-ripening.

Early maturing varieties:

Pearl - This variety of black currant has quite sweet and very large berries. And also tolerates frost well.

Venus - this variety has a tall bush with sweet-sour, large black berries. It is frost hardy and has good immunity.

Black BMW - This variety has a tall but compact bush with huge black, sweet berries. This variety tolerates drought well, but it still needs watering, though rare, but abundant.

Jonker Van Tets - this variety has rather large, sweet and sour red berries. It is well resistant to frost and has excellent immunity.

Ural white - this variety is not tall, but very sprawling bush, on which large, sweet white berries grow. It is resistant to both drought and frost.

Mid-early varieties:

Bashkir giant - this variety has a very strong immunity from both diseases and pests. Its berries are black, sweet and sour and very large.

Belarusian sweet - this variety of black currant, which has very large berries of a sweet taste. Her bushes of medium size are completely covered with berries.

Umka - the bushes of this variety are very tall and spreading with large and sweet white berries. This variety has a consistently high yield.

Mid-season varieties:

Sanuta Is a tall but compact shrub that has very large, sweet and sour black berries. It perfectly tolerates even the most severe winter.

Osipovskaya sweet - the shrub of this variety itself is large and tall. Its berries are large, sweet red in color; these berries are great for fresh food.

Imperial yellow - a bush of this variety grows medium in size. Its berries are yellow, small and sweet-sour. And this variety differs from others in high yield.

Versailles white - in this variety, sweet and sour berries grow in different sizes and white. More suitable for fresh food than for preforms.

Mid-late varieties:

Jubilee Digging - this variety has very compact bushes with black berries. Medium-sized berries have a sweet and sour taste and have good pest immunity.

Roland - this variety is very resistant to frost and various diseases. The berries of this variety have a sweet and sour taste and are red in color. This variety always has a high yield.

Late-ripening varieties:

Lazy person - very large black berries grow on this large bush.

Valentinovka Is a variety of red currants. The berries themselves are very large and sweet.

Lately, golden currant has also been gaining great popularity. These shrubs are considered decorative, and their flowers are all shades of yellow. And in the fall, the foliage becomes variegated. The color of the golden currant fruit depends on the variety. The berries can be orange, yellow, brown, or even black.

Also, currants have hybrids and they are very popular:

Yoshta Is a hybrid of black currant and gooseberry. Breeders have bred this variety for almost 40 years. It grows in height and width up to one and a half meters.Its berries are large with a dense skin.

They grow in several pieces on one brush. These berries are black in color with a purple tinge, they have a nutmeg flavor and a pleasant aroma. This hybrid tolerates frost well and has good immunity against diseases and pests. The bush of this variety is able to live in one place for up to 30 years.

Chroma - this variety is also a hybrid of currants and gooseberries, and it was created in Sweden. In this variety, large black berries grow up to 2 cm in diameter. The berries, like in the previous hybrid, are collected in a cluster of several pieces. They have no smell at all, and they taste like currants and gooseberries.

In general, there is absolutely nothing complicated in the cultivation of currants, and absolutely any person can do it. And since the currant plant is a very popular, and most importantly, a useful berry, everyone should plant at least 1 bush on their site.

In order for the currant plant to please with its harvest, you just need to observe the correct conditions for reproduction, planting, watering, feeding and pruning.

And the main thing is to choose the right variety that is right for you and a good healthy seedling. And then, observing all these conditions, already in the second year you will receive a tasty, healthy and, which is not a little important, a large harvest.