Blackcurrant has been very successfully grown as a garden crop over the past few centuries. Almost all of us from early childhood are familiar with the amazing taste and aroma of this berry. Even the wide variety of exotic berries and fruits available today cannot overshadow the unique taste of currants.

Content:

1. About the usefulness of blackcurrant
2. When and how to plant currants video
3. spring planting
4. autumn landing
5. Blackcurrant planting
6. Currant care, fertilizer and top dressing
7. Currant watering
8. Straw mulching
9. Blackcurrant varieties video
10. Blackcurrant - remove pests and fight
11. Blackcurrant - diseases video

About the usefulness of blackcurrant

In addition to the sweet-sour taste sensations when eating berries, the medicinal properties of blackcurrant are also of interest. In the fruits of currant there is a large number of necessary and useful to the human body nutrients, minerals and vitamins.

It is also worth noting that, in comparison with other fruits, currant berries contain the highest content of vitamin C. Historical information confirms that in ancient times, currants were used as a medicinal and preventive plant. The list of advantages and useful properties is quite large.

When and how to plant currants

For beginning gardeners, the question often arises: when is it better to plant all the tics of currant seedlings in autumn or spring? Experienced experts say that landing can be done both in autumn and spring.

About how to plant currants correctly:

spring planting

It must be produced before active life begins in the seedlings, that is, immediately after the last snow has melted and the night temperature will no longer drop below 0 C.

The main positive point of spring planting can be considered the fact that there is no threat of freezing during winter strong and steady frosts.

Also, do not forget about the other side of the coin. When planning planting seedlings in spring, the main thing is not to miss the period when winter has lost its position, and the sap flow and budding of the buds have not yet begun.

A certain time will pass from planting to the beginning of active growth of the plant, during which the plant will take root in a new place and begin to develop the root system.

If the storage of seedlings purchased in the autumn period was not correct, then most likely they will die after planting, or will be very weak and painful.

autumn landing

It can be produced from mid-September to early November. It all depends on the temperature regime of a particular region. The closer the region is located to the southern part of the world, the later it is possible to land, and vice versa, the north of the region, the earlier the land. The main condition for choosing the time is a mandatory period of about twenty days from the moment of planting to the beginning of the first soil frost. This temporary gap will be enough for a more or less successful habituation of the root system to a new habitat.

The advantages of autumn planting include:

• sufficient time for a leisurely purchase and planting of seedlings;
• no risk of damage to planting material during winter storage, as it is completely absent;
• seedlings have the opportunity not only to acclimatize before hibernation, but to slightly increase the size of the roots, due to the plus ambient temperature;
• more active and rapid development with the advent of spring, compared with spring planting.

The disadvantage of this planting is one, but very significant: in the event that in winter there is little or no snow, and frosts are strong, the probability of death of a seedling is almost 100%. As a safety net against similar problems and to preserve the root system from the harm caused by low temperatures, you can use needles, foliage, etc. as a shelter for the soil around the seedling.

After familiarizing yourself with all the pros and cons of planting, novice gardeners will understand that you can plant in the spring and autumn. But what kind of landing is more acceptable for a particular region, you have to choose yourself.

Blackcurrant planting

Prior to planting, attention must be paid to the place planned for it.

In other words, the place needs to be prepared. To begin with, they dig a hole, the width of which should be about 0.8 meters, and the depth should not exceed 0.5 meters. Fertile soil is placed at the bottom with the addition of 3-year-old manure, humus or compost. If the amount of organic additives is sufficient, then mineral fertilizers can be omitted. In cases where it is not possible to acquire and add organic matter, and even in addition the soil is not fertile, approximately 150 grams of a complex fertilizer mixture is placed at the bottom of the pit, which includes: potassium, nitrogen and phosphorus. After this, the soil is slightly compacted.

After the soil is fully prepared for planting, you can begin to prepare seedlings. First, you need to carefully examine the roots. If any damage is found, remove the part that is injured. It is also worth trimming and too long root shoots.

After that, a small depression is made in the pit for landing and landing at an angle of about 45 degrees. The root neck should be deepened about 10 centimeters from the level of seedling growth in the nursery. It is imperative to remove the entire part of the seedling remaining above the ground. Only three lower kidneys should be left.

Now the plant needs to be abundantly watered. Also, do not forget about mulching. It is produced using grass, pine needles and so on.

Currant care, fertilizer and top dressing

In order for the currant bushes to actively grow and delight the harvest, they need to be fed and fertilized every year. An equally positive plant responds to the introduction of both organic fertilizers and mineral fertilizers into the soil.

With properly prepared and well-fertilized pits for planting, to stimulate active growth, in the first year of life, a seedling will be enough to carry out:

• with the advent of spring, add the following composition: manure with water (1:10), bird droppings with water (1:50) or urea, about 10 grams per seedling;
• toward the end of summer or the beginning of autumn, add a mixture of potassium phosphorus of 10 - 15 grams of each species for each seedling.

After the plant has begun to bear fruit (that is, grown), top dressing should not be stopped, it should be done three times at a certain time:

• at the beginning of the growing season - approximately in the month of May, nitrogen fertilizing is introduced (contributes to more active growth and development of young shoots);
• in the middle of the growing season - with the beginning of flowering and the formation of fruits, it is necessary to add nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium;
• the end of the growing season - approximately mid-September, the plant begins to prepare for wintering, forms the buds of the fruit buds for the next season, the need for nitrogen supplementation is reduced to zero, and the need for potash and phosphorus increases (therefore, only the last ones should be added).

In addition to all of the above, with the advent of spring or with the end of autumn, 1.5 buckets of rotted manure or humus are obligatory brought under each formed bush.

You will also need to prune currants in the fall, the bushes should be disposed of from old, broken and diseased branches. Perform it in the second half of October, before the onset of frost.

Currant watering

She loves moisture, so the earth in the area planted with currants should be constantly moist. Dry land, even for a short period of time, often leads to loss or deterioration of the crop, as well as to inhibition of development and growth.

The most effective irrigation method for this crop is drip irrigation. It does not allow overmoistening of the soil and maintains it in an ideal wet state for the safe growth, development and fruiting of the plant.

Straw mulching

When the possibility of installing drip irrigation is completely absent, you can resort to the help of the well-known mulching method for a long time. Its meaning lies in the fact that sawdust, grass or other organic matter is introduced into the topsoil.

They help retain moisture in the soil and inhibit the active growth of weeds. Watering in such cases is done from hoses or using buckets (about 2-3 buckets under each of the planted bushes). Over time, when organics decompose, the plant uses the neoplasm as an additional fertilizer.

It is worth noting that the land was mulched, then watering is less common than in cases of absence.

Blackcurrant varieties

Today, more than 200 varieties of this interesting and useful culture are known. Among them, one can distinguish several popular and most beloved gardeners.

Selechenskaya is an early variety, recommended for planting in regions with a temperate and cold climate, foliage is small in size with a dark green color, flowering will delight owners with the brightness of red-violet tones, Black, round and sweet berries are famous for their impressive size (each of them can reach in a weight of 5 grams), the variety is well established, resistant to pathogenic formations.

Dobrynya is a medium variety, planted in the same climatic regions, the leaves are large and green, the flowers are impressive in size soft yellow, the berries (weighing up to 6 grams) have an oval shape and dark color, the taste is sweet and sour, and the berries are interesting for their memorable aroma , the variety is medium-resistant to a sharp spring drop in temperature, to drought, to damage by fungal diseases and ticks.

Vigorous - medium-term ripeness of the fruit, bush growth is very restrained, medium-sized leaves, dark green color, medium-sized flowers with pale pink and cream color, berries (weight up to 5.5 grams) have an elongated shape and black color, there are a lot of seeds in berries and their size is also impressive, the skin is thick, the middle is fleshy, the taste is fresh and sour, the variety is resistant to low winter temperatures, practically no more than a pock and a tick.

Watch a video about the most popular varieties of currant:

Blackcurrant pests and their control

Pests of blackcurrant can adversely affect the quantity and quality of the crop. It is possible to protect the plant from such misfortune only in the case of preventive measures and regular struggle with them.

Even varieties with high resistance to damage from pests can suffer from invasion of aphids or moths. Specialists advise that in small garden plots where gardeners grow several currant bushes, as a protection against pests and in order to preserve the crop environmentally friendly, use only folk remedies.

In areas where mass cultivation of crops is carried out, folk methods will not help, it is necessary to use chemicals containing chemicals here.

Blackcurrant - diseases

Diseases on the bush can occur for various reasons and at different times of vegetative development. Quite often, certain weather conditions affect the development of diseases. Only careful monitoring of the development of the shrub and the correct measures taken during this time will help (if a disease is detected) to preserve both the crop and the whole plant.

The diseases most often affecting currants:

1. Septoria is the formation of small spots of dark color on the deciduous cover (over time, the color becomes lighter), a favorable environment for formations is tightly spaced, not blown leaves, after a short period of time the disease affects the entire sheet completely, after which it dries and falls off . Treatment: treatment of the affected shrub with Bordeaux liquid at least twice with an interval of ten days (the solution is made as follows 100 grams of Bordeaux liquid per 10 liters of water).
2. Viral mosaic - active yellowing of leafy veins, most often occurs in the first half of summer, provokes gall aphid disease. Treatment: if the onset of the disease is missed, then eliminating the infection will be very difficult; early systemic fungicides may help; in cases when the disease is neglected, it is worth resorting to radical variants of the fight - uprooting followed by thorough soil treatment with a solution of manganese.
3. Anthracnose is the appearance of small reddish spots, after a while the leaf is completely covered with spots, withers and falls, is especially active in rainy and cold summers, pathogenic spores tolerate low temperatures perfectly, therefore, with the advent of autumn, the bush with the disease is sanitized and carefully cleaned with plot fallen infected leaves. Treatment: treatment with systemic fungicide, prevention is carried out with Bordeaux liquid (100 grams per 10 liters of water).

More details about currant diseases:

Author: Sergey and Svetlana Khuentsov

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