However, the elderly branches bear fruits, but their quantity and quality can make a difference. Space plants 1.5-1.8m (5-6ft) apart, using the wider spacing for vigorous cultivars. The bush is well established and is about 3 m wide by 2 m deep, and 1.5 m high. Mix a kilo or so (a couple of pounds) of bonemeal with hoof and horn meal into the bottom of the planting hole. Basic Rules of Growing Blackcurrants: They fruit well on two and three year old stems, which then become quite unproductive. In mid-autumn take cuttings of current season’s shoots that are well ripened and look healthy. Take 12" (30cm) cuttings from the one-year old stems and you have all you need for new plants. Blackcurrant bushes are very simple to grow. Aim to remove up to a third of the old stems annually. Feed with a high potash fertiliser weekly during the growing season and mulch the soil around the plant with well-rotted manure, leaf mould or compost. Slow-growing plants can be fed again in early summer. In your medicinal garden. Currant leaf has many beneficial properties. Avoid hoeing near the base of the bush because the hoe might cut through new shoots developing at the base of the plant. The stems of black currants emerge directly from the soil instead of branching out from a single trunk-like red and white currants. Our bestselling books for growing success! Open out the centre of the bush into a cup shape to give good air flow through the bush and to aid fruit harvesting. So one plant may be all you need. Dig For Victory; Monthly Guides & Commentary. You can simply press the seeds gently into the mix and then brush the soil over the top. Plant black currants so that the soil marks on the stems will sit 2 inches below the surface of the soil. In a shady, unused spot. Take cuttings the third week of October, or after the leaves have turned brown and have begun to fall off. And it has excellent taste. Plants will fail to flourish if roots are too deep or too shallow. Correct planting and pruning is important as most of the fruit is born on last year’s stems. Currant canes lack the spines and bear 8 to 30 pea-sized berries in clusters. You can create one or many new plants each season. During the first year, give a feed of a general purpose liquid fertilizer every month and keep the plants well watered. This will encourage new root and shoots growth. Blackcurrant bushes are not difficult to grow and can produce 4.5-7 kg (10-15 lb) of fruit per year. Personal Planting Updates & Tips Ben Gairn and Ben Connan are suitable compact varieties for pots. The fruits should be ready during July and August, once they’re plump and dark-coloured and soft to the squeeze. For Northern climates, the more important it is to grow a hardy, frost-resistant variety like Ben Nevis . FREE SEEDS SPECIAL OFFER, Free Trial - Allotment Planner In a poultry foraging area. They are one of the few soft fruit bushes to like damp soil, but they do need plenty of sun and a sheltered position in the North & Scotland. Ben Sarek is also good for container growing but as it heavily crops, it may require support. Experienced gardeners-summer residents know that it is quite easy to propagate black currants. Fertilize in late fall by spreading a 1-inch (2.5 cm) layer of composted manure over the root zones of the plants. When you are taking cuttings from gooseberry bushes, be sure that they are hardwood cuttings. The Right Soil for Black Currants After you have the right spot picked, you need to make sure you have the right soil available for the black currants to start growing in. Do not soak plants in water more than 1 hour! Although closely related, you can easily distinguish currants and gooseberries by examining the canes and fruit. Or grow in a fruit cage. Sow and Plant. So fresh wood from below ground is needed each year. The time to propagate the bushes is when the foliage has stopped growing and is beginning to turn brown or falling off. Net the bushes down to ground level to prevent birds from stealing the fruit . Ben Lomond is late flowering. The Blackcurrant bush is on the high, south end of the plot. In this video you will learn the simple steps you need to take to prune a blackcurrant bush. Gooseberry canes normally produce a spine at each leaf node and bear roughly grape-sized berries singly or in groups of two or three. At the edges of open woods or in dappled shade in the woods (as in a. by email twice a month, Grow Your Own – Allotment – Gardening Help, Growing Blackcurrants – How to Grow Blackcurrants, Fruit Roll Recipe – Soft Fruit Swiss Roll Dessert. Notes. Do not plant near wild plants or plants whose origins are unknown. 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