CUERANTS. 



BY U. P. HEDRICK. 



Currants ripen at a time of the year when other fruits are 

 scarce, and therefore play an important part in fruit growing, 

 both for home use and for the markets. Moreover, their 

 sprightHness of flavor and healthfulness commend them for 

 the home garden, while the fact that they can be picked and 

 sold before fully ripe, and therefore bear shipment well and 

 with but little waste, commends them for market purposes. 

 The currant is a northern plant and refuses to grow in any 

 but a cold climate. It stands well the lowest temperature 

 reached in the United States, but is quickly injured by hot 

 summer suns. In selecting a location for this fruit, then, 

 even in northern latitudes, a cool, northern exposure is de- 

 sirable. For small plantations the shade of trees or of build- 

 ings can often be utilized, while in commercial plantings 

 high land may be made to offset low latitude. 



Soils. 

 The currant will bear fruit in almost any soil, but to 

 produce profitable crops it should be planted in a cool, moist 

 soil. Clay loams, or even a stiff loam, if well drained, meet 

 well the soil requirement of the currant. The plant is a rank 

 grower, and whatever the soil, it must be rich. Moreover, 

 the roots do not extend far, and the food must therefore be 

 close at hand. Stable manure is a most acceptable fertilizer, 

 but should be applied the season previous to the setting 

 of the plants, or in old plantations the application should be 

 made in the fall or winter. Many currant growers maintain 

 that muriate or sulphate of potash used at the rate of from 

 100 to 200 pounds per acre increases productiveness and adds 

 quality to the fruit. Probably, however, the fertilizer re- 

 quirements of the plant are best determined by individual 

 experiments with potash, phosphoric acid and nitrogen. 



