Hardly any berry belongs in the garden as naturally as the currant. It is tough, lives to a great age, and crops heavily year after year, almost without you lifting a finger. And yet it is worth a second look, because behind that familiar name sit three rather different berries, and one of them wants pruning quite unlike the others.
Three Berries, One Family
Red and white currants are botanically the same species (Ribes rubrum); the white is simply a colour variant of the red. The blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum) is a species of its own, with a bold flavour all to itself.
The red tastes fresh and tart, the classic for jelly, juice, and cake. The white is milder and sweeter, perfect for snacking straight off the bush if red is too sour for you. The black is the boldest and sharpest, unmistakable in flavour (it is the basis of Cassis) and especially rich in vitamin C. All three are healthy, tough, and loyal croppers for many years.
Not Fussy About Its Site
Currants are uncomplicated. A normal, humus-rich, evenly moist garden soil is plenty for them; they need no acidic special mix like the blueberry does. Red and white like a sunny spot, while the black will even put up with part shade. A mulch layer of compost or leaves keeps the soil moist and feeds the shallow roots.
Plant in autumn or early spring, about 1.5 m apart. For small gardens you can also get currants as a standard (tree-form), which saves space and takes the strain off your back at picking time.
Pruning: Red and White Unlike Black
This is the one point that decides between a good harvest and a meagre one. Red and black currants fruit on different wood.
With red and white currants you grow an open bush of eight to twelve main shoots of different ages. In winter or after harvest (roughly CW 6 to 9) you cut out only the oldest, dark shoots right down at the base and let a few strong young ones take their place. That is all it takes.
The blackcurrant you prune more boldly:
Start in the third year
For the first two years, let the bush build up. After that, prune every year.
Take out a third of the oldest
Each year, cut about a third of the oldest, dark shoots right out at the base.
Leave the young wood
The strong one-year-old shoots stay, because they will carry the most berries next year.
Keep it open
The aim is a bush that renews itself completely every three to four years and keeps pushing out fresh fruiting wood.
Once you have grasped the difference between red and black wood, both colours will crop fully for you, year after year.
Harvesting With the Right Timing
Harvest time runs from late June into August. A common mistake is picking too early. Red and white currants only turn properly sweet a few days after they colour up, once they have fully ripened. Pick them whole cluster by whole cluster (the strig), and the delicate berries stay intact. The black you pick singly or by the cluster, depending on how evenly it ripens.
Propagating and Keeping It Healthy
Currants, like their relative the jostaberry, are child's play to propagate from hardwood cuttings.
Diseases and pests usually stay within bounds. The one you are most likely to meet is the blackcurrant gall mite (big bud mite), above all on black varieties: it makes single buds swell up strikingly fat and round over winter. Break out any such buds and put them in the household waste. Red blisters on the leaves of the redcurrant come from the currant blister aphid; they look unsightly, but they barely harm the bush.
Currants at a glance
- Three coloursRed (tart), white (mild and sweet), and black (bold, rich in vitamins).
- One is enoughMostly self-fertile; a single bush crops reliably.
- UndemandingNormal garden soil, sun to part shade, no special mix.
- Mind the pruningThin red and white only lightly; renew black hard.
- Easy to propagateHardwood cuttings taken in autumn root almost by themselves.
- Net at harvestProtect ripe berries from birds, especially the red ones.
Häufige Fragen
What is the difference between red, white, and blackcurrants?
Red and white are the same species (Ribes rubrum); the white is a milder, sweeter colour variant. The black (Ribes nigrum) is a species of its own, with a bold, sharp flavour and especially plenty of vitamin C. In the garden the main difference between them is the pruning.
Do I need more than one currant bush?
No. Most varieties are self-fertile, and a single bush crops reliably. A second one can nudge the yield up a little, but it is not necessary.
How do I prune red and black currants differently?
Red and white fruit on older wood and need only light thinning; the oldest shoots come out at the base. The black fruits on one-year-old wood and gets harder renewal pruning: take out about a third of the oldest shoots every year.
Why does my blackcurrant have fat, round buds?
That is usually the blackcurrant gall mite (big bud mite). Break out the infested, strikingly swollen buds in winter and put them in the household waste, not on the compost. That way you keep the infestation small.
At a Glance
Currants are a cornerstone of the berry garden: tough, long-lived, self-fertile, and to be had in three colours. Above all, remember the one rule about pruning, and red, white, and black will all crop just as heavily. The rest is pure pleasure, whether fresh, as jelly, or in a cake.
In Gartenkern you can set up the yearly pruning, tailored to each colour, and the harvest window as recurring tasks, and note down which variety does best for you. Come next summer, you will know exactly when your redcurrant 'Rovada' was ripe and which cutting gave you the strongest young plant.
