GROSSULARIE,. I. RIBES. 



189 



Priming. The chief part of the future culture is seasonable 

 pruning. After the plants are furnished with full heads, they 

 produce many superfluous and disorderly shoots every summer, 

 crowding the general bearers, so as to require retrenchment 

 and regulation, both in the young growth of the year and older 

 wood. The season for the capital pruning is winter ; but a pre- 

 paratory part is performed in summer, to thin the superfluous 

 shoots of the year where too crowded, excluding the sun and 

 air from the fruit. First as to standards : 



Summer pruning. In May or June cut out close the most 

 irregular shoots, rising in the centre of the bush with all the 

 cross and water shoots, to admit more freely the essential in- 

 fluence of the air and sun, and promote the growth of the fruit 

 and improve its flavour. Also twist off all root suckers as they 

 appear. 



Winter pruning. This extends both to the old and young 

 wood ; the time for it is when the plant is at rest. Of the 

 shoots of the preceding summer, cut out the cross-placed and 

 the otherwise irregular, with those which are not wanted for 

 vacancies ; but superfluous good lateral shoots are to be cut 

 down to short stubs or artificial spurs, about half an inch long, 

 so as to leave an eye or two, in order that they may send out 

 fruit-shoots and spurs. With regard to the old bearers, take 

 away those which are naked, or getting unfruitful, or of which 

 the fruit is declining in size ; reduce any of excessive length, 

 pruning in to some well-placed lateral young shoot, to preserve 

 the head within some regular compass ; cut out also any de- 

 cayed or cankery parts ; retain a competency of the finest best- 

 placed new shoots above and below vacant parts, to come in for 

 successional bearers, or to supply the places of defective old 

 wood, and preserve a leading shoot to the principal branches, 

 where within orderly limits, shortening such terminal shoots as 

 are of greatest length to 10, 12, or 15 inches, according to their 

 strength and the situation of the branches, and leaving those of 

 small extent mostly entire. Take care of the small lateral 

 fruit-spurs, and occasionally select short lateral shoots of 1,2, 

 or 3 inches, for bearing fruit ; or similar small shoots may be 

 cut to short snags of an inch or two long, also for fruiting. 

 Thin out spurs of the old branches where very thick. As the 

 old fruit branches decline bearing, or decay, cut them away, 

 taking care to provide young ones in succession ; and thus keep 

 the bushes always furnished with full-bearing branches, and ad- 

 vancing young bearers, in a regular open expansion, 6, 8, or 10 

 inches asunder at the extremities, circumscribing the general 

 head within the height of 3 or 4 feet, or 5 at most. 



" Currants of the finest quality," Mr. Neill observes, " are 

 raised by Macdona!d, at Dalkeith House. A good deal depends 

 upon the way in which he manages the bushes, especially during 

 the ripening of the fruit. He prunes the bushes at the usual 

 season of mid-winter, shortening the last year's shoots down to 

 an inch or an inch and a half. Next summer the plants show 

 plenty of fruit, and at the same time throw out plenty of strong 

 shoots. As soon as the berries begin to colour, he cuts off the 

 summer shoots to within 5 or 6 inches before the fruit. This is 

 commonly done with the garden shears, with which a man may 

 go over half an acre of bushes in a day. Sun and air thus get 

 more free access, and more of the vigour of the plant is di- 

 rected to the fruit ; the berries are found not only to be of higher 

 flavour, but larger than usual." Neill, Cal. mem. vol. 2. 



To mall-bushes, espaliers, and fan- standards, without support, 

 the same course of summer and winter pruning is applicable, 

 with the obvious variations required by their figure. In training 

 wall-trees, 2 branches are led in an horizontal direction along 

 the bottom of the wall or trellis, perhaps half a foot from the 

 surface of the earth, and the growths from these of all upright 

 shoots, which will admit of being arranged at the distance of 



5 or G inches from each other, is encouraged. Fan standards 

 are sometimes trained in a manner nearly similar, and some- 

 times with the branches radiating from the crown of the stem. 



Insects, &c. The red currant is occasionally attacked by the 

 caterpillar, and very frequently by the aphis ribes, Lin. which 

 changes the colour of the leaves to red, pits and puckers them, 

 and causes the fruit to be shrivelled and flavourless. Forsyth 

 says, " As currants are very liable to be devoured by earwigs, 

 which take shelter under their leaves and branches, bundles of 

 bean-stalks should be hung up some time before the bushes are 

 covered with mats or nets. If proper attention be not paid to 

 this, the fruit will generally suffer very much from these insects. 

 After the bushes are covered, take the mats off once in 3 or 4 

 days, and kill the earwigs that have got into the bean-stalks, 

 which it will be necessary still to keep hung up. As there is a 

 sweetness in the inside of bean-stalks which attracts the ear- 

 wigs, they very regularly take shelter in them from rain." 



Taking the crop and preserving. The ripening fruit comes 

 in for small gatherings in June, advances to maturity in July, 

 and continues in perfection till the end of August ; or if trees 

 in a full exposure are timely defended from birds and the full 

 sun, with garden mats, or protected with nets where they grow 

 against walls, the fruit may be continued good till September or 

 October. Gather in a dry state, as in rainy weather they lose 

 their flavour. 



Forcing. To obtain early currants by forcing, let some good 

 bearing trees, in pots, be placed early in January or February, 

 in any common forcing department : they will produce ripe fruit 

 in April or May. 



Red and White Currant. Fl. April, May. Brit. Sh. 4 to 6 ft. 



50 R. GLANDULOSUM (Ruiz, et Pav. fl. per. t. 233. f. 6. but 

 not of Ait.) leaves cordate, bluntly 3-lobed, doubly serrated, 

 rugged ; racemes short ; calyx glandular, pubescent. Jj . H. 

 Native of Chili, on wooded hills. Berl. 1. c. t. 2. f. 20. 



Glandular- c&\yx.ed Currant. Fl. April, May. Clt. 1820. 

 Shrub 4 to 6 feet. 



51 R. CAMPANULA TUM (Humb. et Bonpl. in Willd. herb, ex 

 Rcem. et Schultes, 2. p. 500.) leaves somewhat 5-lobed, doubly 

 crenated, cordate, hairy beneath ; lobes obtuse ; petioles cili- 

 ated with glandular hairs ; racemes pendulous ; calyx campa- 

 nulate; petals oblong-spatulate ; styles bifid. Jj . H. Native 

 of Mexico, near Moran, at the height of 3900 feet. R. affine, 

 H. B. et Kunth, nov. gen. et spec. amer. 6. p. 60. Flowers 

 white. Hardly distinct from the following species. 



Campanulate-calyxed Currant. Shrub 4 to 5 feet. 



52 R. KU'NTHII (Berl. mss. ex D. C. prod. 3. p. 482.) leaves 

 somewhat 5-lobed, doubly serrated, rather cordate at the base, 

 pubescent ; racemes solitary or numerous, crowded, erect ; calyx 

 campanulate ; petals spatulate, reflexed ; stamens 5-6, hardly 

 shorter than the petals ; styles 3-4-cleft ; stigmas capitate. ^ . 

 H. Native of Mexico, along with the preceding. R. multi- 

 florum, H. B. et Kunth, 1. c. but not of Kit. 



Kunth's Currant. Shrub 4 to 6 feet. 



53 R. TRI'STE (Pall. nov. act. petro. 10. p. 378.) leaves 5- 

 lobed ; branches simple, twiggy, bearing leaves and racemes of 

 flowers at the apex ; racemes pendulous, both when in flower 

 and in fruit ; corollas flattish, reddish on the outside, and yel- 

 lowish inside ; petals revolute. T? . H. Native of Siberia, 

 on the Mongol Mountains. Berries small, black, insipid. Root 

 creeping. 



/)ar/l-fruited Currant. Fl. April, May. Clt. 1820. Shrub 

 2 to 3 feet. 



54 R. GLACIA V LE (Wall. cat. no. 6833.) branches smooth ; 

 leaves glabrous above, but with a few scattered bristly hairs 

 beneath, cordate at the base, 3-5-lobed at the apex ; lobes acute, 

 serrated ; petioles long, serrated at the base ; racemes droop- 



