Amateur gardeners pay a lot of attention to currants. We grow black, red or white varieties as berry bushes, and the golden one is often used as an ornamental plant to create hedges. Interestingly, in Kazakhstan and the USA it is bred to produce berries on an industrial scale. Black currants are the most fragrant, and red and white ones, differing only in the color of the fruit, withstand cold winters better and are less likely to get sick.
The berries contain many vitamins and microelements; delicious juices, preserves, jams, compotes, and marmalade are prepared from them. Black currant contains essential oils; its fruits, leaves, and twigs in the first year of life are considered medicinal in our country (red currant also has a whole list of medicinal properties). But in order to get a good harvest, you need to properly care for the berry garden. One of the most important aspects of maintenance is pruning currants in the fall. For beginner gardening enthusiasts, we will give simple recommendations.
Currant bushes
To properly prune currants, you need to have an idea of the structure of its bush. It is very important to understand which branches bear fruit best, so as not to remove them with the arrival of autumn and not lose the harvest.
Beginning gardeners clearly see the difference between the fruits of black and red currants and can easily distinguish one plant from another due to the bright aroma of the leaves or its absence. But why currants should be pruned in different ways is not always understood. Watch the video that will answer this and many other questions:
Black or red currant is a shrub up to one and a half meters high, depending on the variety, with a spreading, compact or compressed crown. In some cases, the plant reaches 2.5 m, but such dimensions create difficulties during harvesting, so selection goes along the path of creating smaller cultivars.
Black currant
In one place, a blackcurrant bush grows well and bears fruit for 15-20 years, and with good care - all 30. It consists of a large number of branches of different ages. The most powerful are skeletal; they grow from buds located on an underground stem and are called shoots of zero order.
At the base of the bush there are dormant eyes that do not germinate in the first years after planting the currants. Above are the buds that form lateral, mainly vegetative shoots of the second and third order. It is on them that short branches of ringed fruit grow, producing a harvest for 2-3 years, and then dying off.Most of them are located in the upper part or outside of the bush.
On five-year-old shoots there are no berries or there are very few of them, and the established currants become smaller. Fruitful shoots shift to the periphery, growing either from basal buds or from dormant ones located at the base of old skeletal branches.
Red Ribes
Red and black currants belong to different species, but to the same genus, which in turn belongs to the Gooseberry family. They have a lot in common, and the differences lie mainly in the aroma of the berries and leaves, as well as the lifespan of the branches. The difference between red and white currants is only in the color of the fruit. They require the same care and growing conditions.
Red Ribes It forms a less spreading bush than the black one, it is more winter-hardy and gets sick less often. In general, this plant is not capricious; it is easy to care for even for novice gardeners. Red currant fruits are collected together in several pieces and evenly distributed throughout the bush. They are more durable than black varieties, each bears fruit for 4-5 years, and on fertile soils and with good care - up to 8. Skeletal branches can grow for 6-8 seasons, only then they need to be removed.
Currant pruning
The formation of a currant bush should begin from the moment of planting and continue throughout its life. Constant care, rationing the required number of fruiting branches and replacement shoots is the most important measure for caring for the plant. Pruning black currants in autumn allows you to get a good harvest of high-quality berries. This applies equally to red or white varieties.
Pruning young currants
Usually we bring a two-year-old rooted seedling or a young currant bush to the site and plant it in a suitable place. If it was not pruned in a nursery or shopping center, shorten all the branches, leaving 10-15 cm with 3-4 developed buds. This will help the plant survive the stress of transplantation and take root better.
Usually, in the first year of life in a new area, currants produce only 2-3 normally developed basal shoots. We leave them to form skeletal branches, and cut off the rest at ground level.
It happens that there is simply no strong growth in the first year; only a few thin twigs appeared from under the ground, which stretched slightly and stopped growing. What to do? The answer is simple - they need ruthless pruning at the root. Nothing worthwhile will grow from these twigs anyway, and they will draw out reserves of nutrients and strength from the currants. If the bush is viable, then next season it will produce good shoots of zero order, but if not, replace it.
Annual autumn pruning
Beginning gardeners can easily cope with autumn pruning only if they do it annually. You need to start forming a bush when summer is over, the temperature has dropped, growth processes have slowed down, the foliage has fallen or dried out, but frost has not yet set in. Choose a fine autumn day, as pruning cannot be done in rainy weather.
Let's look at the process of pruning blackcurrants in the form of a simple algorithm.
First year
Plant a two-year-old bush or rooted cutting, shortening it to 10-15 cm.
Second year
In spring, several shoots of zero order appear. In the fall, select 4-5 strong ones among them, with good growth, and leave them to form a bush.The rest need to be cut at ground level. Last year's branches, which have already begun to form into skeletal ones, do not need to be shortened if they are not damaged by diseases or pests.
Comment! Often in the first year there is nothing to choose from; it is good if you manage to leave 2-3 developed shoots of zero order. This is fine.
Third year
In autumn you have black currants with several branches of the first and second years of life, as well as numerous shoots. Leave 4-5 strong zero shoots this year. They should be well located, that is, directed not inside the bush, but outward, not intersecting, and not interfering with each other’s growth. The rest need pruning at the root.
Carefully inspect two- and three-year-old shoots. They have already acquired branches of the second, and possibly third order. Cut off all the young growth that goes not outward, but into the currant bush, therefore thickening and shading it. Even a novice gardener can do this. The cut should be made as close to the skeletal branch as possible, being careful not to damage it or leave a stump.
The tops of young shoots do not need to be shortened, unless they are well matured and not affected by pests or diseases. To keep currants healthy, monitor their development during the growing season and carry out preventive treatments with chemicals or folk remedies in a timely manner. For example, a breeding ground for aphids can easily be identified by its curved tops.
Fourth year
No different from the third, only now there will be more work and it will be more difficult to do it.If there is not one, but several bushes in the berry garden, by this time you will already have a little experience.
Fifth year
In addition to the usual removal of excess growth and sanitary pruning, a new stage of caring for currant bushes will begin. The productivity of the branches of the fifth year has dropped and they need to be removed. This will be easy to do with ratchet pruners or loppers.
In the future, a kind of cycle will occur - the old five-year-old branches are removed, and the strongest zero growth (replacement shoots) is left every year. And so every year for all 30 years of the life of the currant bush. A properly formed adult plant consists of 15-20 branches of various ages.
Pruning old bushes
If you have cared for the berry garden yourself and correctly since planting, then taking care of old bushes will not cause problems. But in the case where pruning was not carried out at all or was done somehow, it will be difficult even for an experienced gardener to put them in order.
Watch a video to help you complete this task or read our article on rejuvenating old currant bushes:
What is the difference between pruning black and red currants?
By and large, pruning black and red currants is carried out according to the same principle. You just need to take into account that it is undesirable to cut off the tops of the first one, since the main part of the berries is located in the upper part of the bush. Elongated red currant shoots can be shortened as you like.
It's easier to care for.The lifespan of the skeletal branches of red currants is 6-8 years, the fruits are 5, and with good care, all 8. This means that they need to be cut at the root no earlier than in the seventh year. In addition, red or white varieties produce fewer replacement shoots and branch less than black varieties. Therefore, it is easier to prune their bushes.
Conclusion
The main thing in pruning currants is self-confidence and a steady hand. Even if something goes wrong in the first year, the next season will delight you with new growth, and you will not repeat previous mistakes.
