CURRANTS AND GOOSEBERRIES 

 IN THE HOME GARDEN 



JOHN L. DOAN 



School of Horticulture for Women, Ambler, Pa. 



Lusciousness, Delicacy, and Juiciness of These Fruits 

 Realized to the Full Only When Grown Where Used 



Editors' Note: — Apart from the matter of intrinsic quality and state of maturity it must be recognized that good fruit is becoming less and less 

 easy to obtain at reasonable prices and that this deficiency of an acknowledged essential in the dietary must be supplied at home. This article is the 

 fourth of a series especially prepared for The Garden Magazine by Mr. Doan dealing with the various aspects and possibilities of the home fruit 

 garden. "What, Why, and How Much Fruit to Plant" may be found on pages 323, 324 of our February (1922) issue; "Strawberries for the Home 

 Garden" in March, pages 27-29; "Raspberries, Blackberries, and Dewberries," April, pages 105, 106. 



IHE half-ripe sharply acid gooseberries and the hard, 

 green currants which the ordinary person knows in the 

 store do not tell what these fruits really are, nor do the 

 thick, neglected bushes in the corner of a poorly kept 

 garden do justice to their possibilities. It is, in fact, almost 

 impossible to get ripe gooseberries from an outside source. To 

 have this excellent fruit at its best one must grow it; and when 

 gathered at the proper time from well kept bushes it is some- 

 thing worth while, indeed. If gooseberries ripen thoroughly 

 before they are gathered, they make an excellent dessert without 

 sugar. The large berried kinds are a favorite fruit among the 

 peoples of western Europe; yet our smaller native varieties are 

 even better in quality, but we haven't learned to grow them for 

 ourselves. Ripe gooseberries make even better tarts and pies 

 than currants and are excellent for jam and preserves. 



Thoroughly ripe, well sweetened currants make a good dessert, 

 and, mixed with raspberries, they form an appetizing combina- 

 tion; and a dish heaped with the clusters of beautiful red fruit, 

 a few amber bunches of the so-called white varieties being mixed 

 in, makes a very attractive centre piece for the breakfast table 



And the pies, the tarts, and jelly that currants make ! And 

 how often a little of their juice is added to that of other fruits 

 to make them jell. 



Few drinks are more refreshing on a hot summer day than 

 currant shrub or a mixture of the juices of the currant and other 

 fruits. 



Nearly all the currants grown in America are red-fruited ones 

 and indeed they are the most beautiful and productive. The 

 white-fruited currants, belonging to the same species, differ in 

 being milder in flavor, less vigorous in growth, and less prolific. 



The European Black Currant is a totally different thing, is 

 much less productive and less desirable in quality, less adapted 

 to our climatic conditions, and so is seldom grown. 



The Golden or Missouri Currant, a favorite bush of old- 

 fashioned lawns, will be familiar as a fragrant yellow flowered 

 shrub in early spring, but very few probably realize that its 

 black fruit makes high-class jam and preserves. It endures 

 well the hot summers of the prairie states and is hardy in most 

 of the North. A few varieties are occasionally grown for fruit. 



The gooseberries of western Europe, which grow fruit as 

 large as plums, are sometimes cultivated in this country, but 

 thrive only in cool, moist regions. From our wild Gooseberry 

 with its very small prickly fruit have already originated remark- 

 ably productive garden varieties with much larger smooth fruit. 

 Crossing these with the European kinds is giving us yet larger 

 fruited varieties. 



Site, Soil and Growing Conditions 



COOL, moist conditions are necessary for both the Goose- 

 berry and Currant. They endure the winters of Maine 

 without injury, but they suffer from our summer heat. They 

 need a cool northerly slope, or, still better, the north side of a 

 fence or building, and south of the Potomac and Ohio rivers 



are usually successfully grown only in shady situations. 

 They bloom very early, when the Peaches and wild Plums are 

 in flower, and obviously, therefore, should not be planted on low 

 ground, subject to late frosts; the Currant should never be 

 planted in wind-swept situations, for the rank young shoots, 

 which are very brittle at their bases, are likely to be snapped 

 off. 



When the Pussy Willows that announce the break of spring 

 are still at their best, the Gooseberry leaf-buds are unfolding, 

 and the Currant bushes are not far behind; so from the Great 

 Lakes eastward, except in the coldest parts of New York and 

 New England, autumn is a better time than spring to plant 

 them. But be sure to mound the soil 8 to 10 inches high about 

 the bases of the fall set bushes and to remove it the next spring. 

 Spring planting is of course quite practical and general, but 

 if you do plant in spring, let the ground be prepared the preced- 

 ing autumn, if possible. 



Let the soil be strong, rich in humus, cool, and moist, but not 

 wet. A heavy loam or well drained clay loam is ideal. But, 

 even on a light soil, success may still be had by keeping the 

 bushes deeply mulched with leaves, straw, or lawn clippings. 



Set the bushes not closer than 5 x 5 or 4 x 6 ft., a little deeper 

 than they stood before digging, and if the bases of covered 

 branches take root, so much the better. Healthy, vigorous 

 one or two-year bushes are by far the best for planting. 



No other bush fruits so need liberal fertilizing nor respond 

 to it so generously. Unless the soil be rather rich already, work 

 in 1 50 to 200 pounds of manure per square rod when the land 

 is prepared. Cover crops are manure savers. Grow them 

 regularly, then apply from 7 to 10 pounds per square rod of a 

 commercial fertilizer (one that carries 2 to 4 per cent, of nitro- 

 gen, 8 per cent, of phosphoric acid, and 10 per cent, of potash) 

 each spring for two years and apply the amount of manure 

 mentioned above the third year. This will be ample for a plan- 

 tation in full bearing. 



Let the first cultivation of the new plantation be deep and 

 thorough, and stir the soil about every ten days until July. 

 The roots of both Gooseberry and Currant grow near the sur- 

 face, so let cultivation become more shallow as they spread. 



Just before the last cultivation sow a suitable cover crop 

 broadcast and work it in. A quart per square rod of equal 

 parts of Rye and Vetch, or Rye and Buckwheat is a good mix- 

 ture. Rye is a cover in the winter and a pump in spring. Its 

 rapid growth quickly removes the excess of water from the soil 

 in early spring. As soon as the ground is dry enough, spade 

 the cover crop under four inches. Do not delay or the ground 

 will become too dry. 



Pruning and Training for Fruit 



BOTH Currant and Gooseberry bushes dread the summer 

 sun. Therefore, when pruning leave the tops dense 

 enough for the foliage to shade the fruit and branches. Do the 

 pruning at any time while the bushes are dormant, and let them 



'79 



