THE CURRANT. 



The currant is a very hardy fruit and for this reason can be grown with suc- 

 cess all over the Province of Ontario, and as fair results are obtained without high 

 culture, almost everyone who has a garden grows currants. Like all other fruits, 

 however, the currant becomes most profitable when it is given good care. 



The currant is a moisture loving fruit, hence for profit it should be planted in 

 a cool, moist, but well drained soil. It also requires rich soil, hence as a rule the 

 best is a good clay loam which is retentive of moisture and cooler than sandy 

 loam. The soil should be thoroughly prepared for currants before planting. One 

 year old plants from cuttings if strong will give good satisfaction, although two 

 year old plants are not too old. They should be planted in rows about six feet 

 apart, and from four to five feet apart in the rows, the wide distance being more 

 satisfactory for the strong growing varieties and especially black currants. Fall 

 planting is best for currants, as the buds start very early in the spring and 

 should these develop before they can be planted, their future growth will 

 be checked. Then can, however, be planted in the spring with success. The 

 plants should be set a little deeper than they were in the nursery, and the soil 

 well pressed against the roots. Thorough cultivation should follow to promote 

 as much growth as possible, but it should be shallow, as the currant roots are 

 near the surface. The following spring the currants will need some pruning to 

 give them a shapely open head, the bush when well shaped having from five to 

 seven main branches well distributed to avoid crowding. The fruit of red cur- 

 rants is formed from spurs on wood two years old, while the fruit of black cur- 

 rants is borne on wood of the previous year. Currants should be pruned annually 

 to get the best results. 



After the bushes are in full bearing, the pruning should be done with the 

 object of removing some of the young and some of the older wood from the ground 

 each year. There should be no wood more than three years old left on black 

 currant bushes, as the object is to keep up a strong growth of young wood. It 

 is also not well to let the wood of red currants get very old, as the finest fruit 

 is produced on the two and three year old wood. 



The currant plantation will begin to give some fruit the third season, but a 

 full crop will not be obtained until the fourth. 



As the currant is a great feeder, drawing heavily on the fertility of the soil, 

 the plantation should receive an annual dressing of barnyard manure or some 

 other fertilizer. Rotten manure applied in the autumn and cultivated in the next 

 spring gives very good results. Applications of wood ashes or muriate of potash 

 and ground bones are also beneficial. 



Varieties Recommended. 

 General List, Approved by the Board op Control. 



Black: Black Victoria, Champion, Lee, Naples, Saunders, 

 Bed: Cherry, Fay, Pomona, Bed Cross, Victoria, Wilder, 

 White: White Grape. 



District Lists, Recommended by the Experimenters. 



Burlington District: By A, W. Peart, Burlington, Ont. 



Commercial: Black: Lee, Naples, Saunders, 



Bed: Cherry, Fay, North Star, Prince Albert, Victoria, Wilder, 

 White: White Grape, 



Lake Huron District: By A, E. Sherrington, Walkerton, Ont. 



Black: Champion, Naples, Saunders. 

 Bed: Pomona, Red Cross. 



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 15 F.O, 



