CURRANTS. 



229 



hairy, white, veined with green, thin-skinned, and of 

 excellent flavour. An abundant bearer. 



Stringer's Maid of the Mill. — Branches erect. Fruit 

 large, roundish oblong, or somewhat ovate, very downy, 

 white, thin-skinned, excellent. Early, and an abundant 

 bearer. 



Sulphur. — Branches erect. Fruit small, roundish, 

 hairy, yellow, moderately thick-skinned, of rich flavour. 

 Rather late; a good bearer. 



Taylor's Bright Venus. — Branches erect. Fruit middle- 

 sized, obovate, very slightly hairy, white, sugary, rich, and 

 excellent, hanging till it shrivels. Middling early; a 

 good bearer. 



Thunder. — Fruit large, roundish, hairy, green, of 

 excellent flavour. Early, and an abundant bearer. 



Whinhans Industry. — Branches partly erect. Fruit 

 large if ripened, the best variety for picking green for 

 tarts, attaining size early, a great improvement on older 

 varieties, both habit and constitution good. 



White Champagne. — Branches very erect. Leaves 

 pubescent above. Fruit small, roundish oblong, hairy, 

 slightly downy, white, rather thick-skinned, sweet, and 

 rich. Middling early; a moderate bearer. 



White Damson. — Branches erect. Fruit small, roundish, 

 smooth, greenish- white, thin-skinned, excellent. Very 

 early, and a good bearer. 



White Fig. — Branches erect. Fruit small, obovate, 

 tapering to the stalk, smooth, white, rather thick-skinned, 

 rich, and excellent. It will hang and shrivel on the plant 

 like a raisin. The bush is not vigorous. 



White Honey. — Branches erect. Fruit small or middle- 

 sized, roundish oval, generally smooth, white, rather 

 thick-skinned, rich, and of excellent flavour. 



Wood ward's Whitesmith. — Branches erect. Fruit large, 

 roundish oblong, very downy, white, thin-skinned, ex- 

 cellent. A variety rarely equalled, scarcely ever excelled. 

 Middling early; an abundant bearer. 



Yellow Ball. — Branches erect. Fruit middle-sized, 

 roundish, smooth, yellow, thick-skinned, of good flavour. 

 Deserving of cultivation on account of its lateness. 



Yellow Champagne. — -Branches erect. Fruit small, 

 roundish, oblong, hairy, yellow, thin-skinned, rich and 

 excellent. Rather late; an abundant bearer. The best 

 yellow-fruited variety. 



The earliest to ripen is Early Sulphur, the richest 

 flavour Red Champagne, and the best varieties for pick- 

 ing green for bottling or for tarts are Keepsake, Whin- 

 han's Industry, and Lancashire Lad. New varieties 

 that show any marked improvement on existing varieties, 

 or that possess sufficient merit when tested by a severe 

 standard, have not been very numerous until quite 

 recently, when Messrs. Veitch, of Chelsea, were success- 

 ful in raising three very fine flavoured seedling varieties 

 — namely Golden Gem, Langley Beauty, and Langley 

 Gage. When these varieties become better known, 

 doubtless they will become universally grown. 



[W. C] 



CHAPTER XII. 



CURRANTS. 



Origin — Soil and Situation — Pruning and Training 

 — Propagation — List of Varieties. 



There are three principal sorts of Currants, 

 the Red (Pdbes rubrum) ; the White, a pale-fruited 



variety of the same species; and the Black 

 (R. nigrum). They are natives of Europe, in- 

 cluding the British Islands, and also of other 

 temperate regions, including North America. 

 They are, as garden fruits, comparatively a 

 modern development, probably since the six- 

 teenth century. Compared with their relation 

 the Gooseberry, the cultivated forms show little 

 difference from the wild types. 



The Red Currant is extensively used for pics, 

 tarts, and jellies; and both it and the White 

 are employed for making Currant-wine. The 

 White, being less acid than the Red, is pre- 

 ferred for dessert, although it is not unusual to 

 use both for the sake of colour. 



The skin of the Black Currant contains an 

 oil of a powerful and peculiar odour, which is 

 disagreeable to many persons. The fruit is, 

 however, in much request for preserving and 

 for making wine. On the whole, Currants are 

 important objects of cultivation, especially in 

 the neighbourhood of towns, where the fruit is 

 always in demand. 



Soil and Situation. — A deep, loamy soil is best 

 adapted for Currants; and the fruit acquires 

 the richest flavour in a situation open to the 

 sun. They are, however, frequently planted 

 against north-aspect walls, on which they suc- 

 ceed with certainty, when other kinds of fruit- 

 trees often fail. Deprived of the sun's rays 

 from six in the morning to six at night, the 

 ! fruit cannot be expected to become so sugary 

 as that on bushes exposed throughout the 

 day to the influence of the solar rays: yet on 

 a north aspect, when the plants are properly 

 managed, it attains a good size and acquires 

 a fine colour. The fruit ornaments the wall 

 by its brilliant contrast of white and red, 

 presuming that both sorts are planted with 

 that view; it can also be kept in good condition 

 on the plants, and will thus afford a late supply. 



The soil should be prepared as for the Goose- 

 berry; and, as with it, the planting is best per- 

 formed in autumn. The distance apart, when 

 planted in quarters, should be 5 or 6 feet each 

 way. 



Pruning and Training. — Plants consisting of a 

 clean stem of 5 inches, and having three shoots, 

 should, when transplanted, have these shortened 

 back to about 4 inches, and to a bud pointing 

 upwards. In the following spring two shoots 

 should be encouraged from each of the shoots 

 so cut back, so that, in autumn, the plant will 

 consist of six shoots. These should all be cut 

 back at the winter pruning, so as to leave them 

 from 4 to 6 inches long, observing always to cut 



