CURRANTS. 



138 



CURRANT MOTH. 



plantation in an open sunny position on a 

 stiff, well-manured loam ; plant the bushes 

 five feet apart each way, and every autumn 

 trench in a good dressing of half-rotten 

 manure in such a way as not to injure the 

 roots of the trees. At autumn-pruning all 

 the young shoots must be cut in to two 

 inches. 



Currants with White Fruit. The sorts 

 which produce the largest fruit are White 

 Blanche, with amber-coloured berries, and 

 White Dutch, the best white currant that 

 is grown. In addition to these may be 

 named Wilmot's Large White, which is a 

 distinct variety and yields well, but has not 

 such a hold on the growers, and is there- 

 fore not in such repute as White Dutch. 



Currants with Red Fruit. Of red cur- 

 rants, Cherry is the largest ; La Fertile 

 and Knight's Large Red are also excellent 

 varieties. There are, beyond these, Hough- 

 ton's Seedling or Houghton's Castle, a 

 large variety with dark -red berries of a 

 highly acidulous flavour ; La Hative, an 

 early variety with large and delicious 

 berries ; Mammoth, with very large fruit, 

 as its name implies, of excellent flavour; 

 Raby Castle, a late variety with highly acid 

 fruit, as all late varieties seem to be ; Red 

 Champagne with berries rather pink than 

 red ; Red Dutch, early and highly pro- 

 ductive, with well flavoured juicy berries j 

 and Warner's Grape, also a desirable 

 variety, yielding long and large clusters 

 of berries, rich in juice and flavour. 



Currants with Black Fruit. The cul- 

 tivation of the black currant is almost the 

 same as the gooseberry (see Gooseberry, 

 Culture of the], and the pruning is the 

 same, only not so severe, as the black 

 currant does not form so many young 

 shoots. All dead and unproductive wood 

 should be removed each year, and the 

 shoots thinned so that light and air may 

 freely enter the bush. Black currants are 

 besi left to grow as bushes ; they do not 



thrive well trained to walls, or as espaliers. 

 The best varieties are the Naples BlacV 

 and Ogden's Black ; both of which, under 

 good culture, are profuse bearers, and very 

 large. Lee's Prolific is a variety of com 

 paratively recent introduction, with large 

 bunches of sweet and well - flavoured 

 berries of considerable size. Sweet 

 Fruited is a fourth variety, whose fruit 

 will hang on the bushes for a consider- 

 able time if netted. The latest and best, 

 perhaps, is Carter's Black Champion, the 

 finest and best cropping black currant in 

 cultivation, possessing the great merit of 

 the fruit hanging on the tree until 

 shrivelled. The bunches are long, and 

 the berries very large, tender, and richly 

 flavoured. 



Moth (Abrax'as Grossula- 



toria) 



This moth often mistaken for a outter- 

 fly, is also known as the Gooseberry Moth 

 and Magpie Moth. It is white patched 

 and spotted with black, with a yellow 

 band on the fore-wings running between 

 the black spots, and a yellowish patch at 

 the base. The grub or caterpillar is white 

 and orange, with black bands at the joints. 

 The chrysalis is black, with orange rings 

 round the segments of the body. The 

 moth is chiefly injurious to gooseberry and 

 currant trees, and also infests the almond, 

 peach, and sloe. It appears in the summer, 

 and deposits its eggs on the leaves of the 

 bushes mentioned. The caterpillar appears 

 in September, and continues in this state 

 throughout the winter. It enters the chry- 

 salis state from the middle of May to the 

 end of June, and the moth emerges there- 

 from from about the middle of June on- 

 wards. The caterpillar is best destroyed 

 by handpicking in September, or by dust- 

 ing the bushes with tobacco powder, or 

 white hellebore in the form of powder, or 

 even with soul and aii- slaked lime well 



