CURRANT 



CURRANT 



919 



pulverized before planting is done. A northern exposure 

 is to be preferred, as in such a situation the currants 

 are not likely to suffer in a dry time. 



Planting. 



The best time to plant currants is in the autumn. If 

 planted in the spring, they will probably have sprouted 

 somewhat before planting, and on this account their 

 growth the first season will be checked. When the 

 soil is in good condition, currants, especially the black 

 varieties, make strong growth, and the bushes reach a 

 large size; hence it is best to give them plenty of space, 

 as they will do better and are more easily picked than if 

 crowded. Six by 5 feet is a good distance to plant. If 

 planted closer, especially in good soil, the bushes become 

 very crowded before it is time to renew the plantation. 

 Strong one-year-old plants 

 are the best, but two-year- 

 old plants are better than 

 poorly rooted yearlings. It is 

 better to err on the side of 

 planting a little deeper than 

 is necessary than to plant 

 too shallow. A good rule to 

 follow is to set the plants at 

 least an inch deeper than they 

 were in the nursery. The 

 soil should be well tramped 

 about the young plant so 

 that there will be no danger 

 of its drying out. After plant- 

 ing, the soil should be leveled 

 and the surface loosened to 

 help retain moisture. 



Cultivation. 



As the currant, to do well, must have a good supply 

 of moisture, cultivation should be begun soon after 

 planting, and the surface soil kept loose during the 

 summer. While the plants are young the cultivation 

 may be fairly deep between the rows, but when the roots 

 begin to extend across the rows, cultivation should be 

 shallow, as many of the roots are quite near the surface. 



Fertilizers. 



After the first application of manure, no more should 

 be necessary until the plants begin to fruit, unless other 

 crops are grown between, after which an annual top- 

 dressing of well-rotted barnyard manure is desirable. 

 When only a light application of manure is given, the 

 addition of 200 to 300 pounds to the acre of muriate 

 of potash would be very beneficial. Wood-ashes also 

 would make a good fertilizer with barnyard manure. 

 There is little danger of giving the currant plantation 

 too much fertilizer. Unfortunately, it is usually the 

 other way, this fruit being often very much neglected. 



Pruning. 



The black and red currants bear most of their fruit 

 on wood of different ages; hence the pruning of one is a 

 little different from the other. The black currant bears 

 most of its fruit on wood of the previous season's 

 growth, and it is important always to have a plentiful 

 supply of one-year-old healthy wood . The red and white 

 currants produce their fruit on spurs which develop 

 from the wood two or more years of age, and it is 

 important in pruning red and white currants to have a 

 liberal supply of wood two years and older; but, as the 

 fruit on the very old wood is not so good as that on the 

 younger, it is best to depend largely on two- and three- 

 year-old wood to bear the fruit. A little pruning may 

 be necessary at the end of the first season after planting 

 in order to get the bush into shape. From six to eight 

 main stems, or even less, with their side branches, will, 

 when properly distributed, bear a good crop of fruit. 

 Future pruning should be done with the aim of having 



from six to eight main branches each season and a few 

 others coming on to take their places. By judicious 

 annual pruning, the bush can be kept sufficiently open 

 to admit light and sunshine. A good rule is not to 

 have any of the branches more than three years of age, 

 since when kept down to this limit the wood will be 

 healthier, stronger growth will be made, and the fruit 

 will be better. 



1152. Black currant Ribes nigrum. 

 (About natural size.) 



When to renew the plantation. 



A currant plantation will bear a great many good 

 crops if well cared for, but if neglected the bushes lose 

 their vigor in a few years. The grower will have to 

 decide by the appearance of the bushes when to renew 

 the plantation; but as a currant plantation can be 

 renewed at comparatively little labor, it is best to have 

 new bushes coming on before the old ones show signs of 

 weakness. At least six good crops may be removed with 

 fair treatment, and ten or more can be obtained if the 

 bushes are in rich soil and well cared for. When one 

 has only a few bushes for home use, they may be 

 reinvigorated by cutting them down to the ground in 

 alternate years, and thus securing a fresh supply of 

 vigorous young wood. 



Yield of currants. 



.The red currant is one of the most regular in bearing 

 of ah 1 fruits, and as it is naturally productive, the aver- 

 age yield should, be large. Bailey, in the "Farm and 

 Garden Rule-Book," puts the average yield at 100 

 bushels per acre. Card, in his book on "Bush-Fruits," 

 says that it ought to be 100 to 150 bushels, "with good 

 care," and reports 320 bushels. At the Central Experi- 

 mental Farm, Ottawa, Canada, the Red Dutch aver- 

 aged for four years at the rate of 7,335 pounds to the 

 acre, or over 183 bushels. The largest yield from red 

 currants obtained at the Central Experimental Farm 

 was in 1900, when six bushes of the Red Dutch currant 

 yielded 73 pounds, 15 ounces of fruit. The bushes were 

 6 by 5 feet apart. This means a yield at the rate of 

 17,892 pounds to the acre, or, at 40 pounds per bushel, 

 447 bushels 12 pounds to the acre. The same variety in 

 1905, in a new plantation, yielded 55 ^ pounds from 

 six bushes, or at the rate of 13,431 pounds to the acre, 

 or 335 bushels 31 pounds. These are very large yields, 

 and while half of this amount may not be expected in 

 ordinary field culture, the fact that such yields can be 

 produced on a small area should be an inspiration to 

 get more on a larger one. 



