Planting red currants: cultivation and care in the open field, pruning

Currant bushes, like other plantings, require favorable environmental conditions for abundant fruiting. When planting red currants, it is necessary to choose a suitable place, observe the growing dates and provide comprehensive care in the future.

How redcurrant grows and what year it bears fruit after planting

The bushes begin to grow actively closer to the middle of spring. Under optimal growing conditions, growth can begin at the end of March. Shoots growing from 2 to 5 years bring the greatest number of fruits.

Fruit branches with flower buds are formed on the skeletal branches.Usually fruit branches are located at the top of the skeletal. This arrangement of fruit branches forms a layered fruiting, due to which most of the berries ripen in the area between the old shoots and new shoots.

Red currant begins to bear fruit later than black and bears fruit in the second year after planting. The yield indicator increases every year, and with proper care, full fruiting occurs after 3-4 years. In order to increase yields, it is recommended to periodically plant new varieties, form plants and adhere to the rules of agricultural technology.

Optimal growing conditions

For active development and fruiting, shrubs require a warm climate, constant natural light and fertile land. The yield and taste characteristics of berries directly depend on the created environmental conditions.

Outdoor planting

In most cases, currants are grown in open ground. When planting, it is necessary to determine the timing in advance, choose a site, properly prepare seedlings and plant according to one of the optimal schemes.

Terms of landing operations

Currants can be planted in different seasons. Planting dates depend on the region of currant growth, climate specifics, weather conditions, selected variety, soil type and a number of other third-party factors.

Autumn

The optimal period for planting currant bushes is the last days of September for the middle zone of the country and the first weeks of October for the southern area. In case of a later planting, young seedlings will not have time to adapt to new conditions leading to reduced yields or death. For successful wintering, plants need to be firmly rooted in the soil.

Spring

If it is not possible to plant red currant bushes in the fall, it is allowed to transfer the seedlings to the ground with the onset of spring warming. It is better to plant bushes in April to exclude the possibility of returning frosts.It is important to consider that bushes planted in spring will lag behind those transferred to the ground in autumn.

What kind of soil does he like

Loose sandy or light loamy soils are well suited for planting any variety of red currant. The acidity index of the soil should be neutral or weak.

Preparation of seedlings

The yield of currants largely depends on the quality and proper preparation of planting material. Seedlings with a well-formed root system grow and bear fruit best. For the active development of bushes, 3-5 skeletal roots up to 20 cm long and a pair of ground shoots 35-40 cm long are enough.

To prevent thin roots from drying out before transplanting plants, wrap them in a soft cloth and cover with polyethylene. Before transplanting plants into the ground, it is necessary to cut the base of the roots and dip in a solution of clay with mullein and water.

Disembarkation scheme

For stable fruiting, it is important to properly plant redcurrant bushes, following the basic pattern. Bushes can be planted along fences or in an open area in a free manner. The gap from bushes to fruit trees should exceed 2.5 m.

When planting in several rows, the row spacing is 1.5-2 m.

Where to plant red currants on the plot: in the shade or in the sun?

Plants are recommended to be planted in an open area, which is well lit by the sun throughout the day. The lack of light leads to a reduction in the quantity and quality of the crop. In the case of growing in greenhouse conditions, the shelter should be removed during the day or the lack of natural light should be compensated by artificial means.

Caring for red fruit crops

Having completed planting berry bushes, you should familiarize yourself with how to care for red currants in order to get a large harvest. For development and intensive fruiting, it is enough to follow standard care rules, including the following:

fertilization and growth stimulants;
regular watering;
formation;
protection from diseases and pests;
shelter for the winter;
timely transplantation and reproduction.

Feeding

The use of fertilizers is one of the main conditions for the active development of bushes. During the growing season, plants quickly consume nutrients from the soil, so the reserves of nutrients need to be replenished periodically.For this purpose, mineral and organic top dressings are used several times during the year. Specifically:

In the spring, after the snow cover melts, the soil is treated with a mixture of compost, potassium sulfate and superphosphate. Fertilizers with a high nitrogen content are also suitable for spring processing.
Before flowering, the soil is fertilized with urea or ammonium nitrate in the ratio of 15 g and 25 g per square, respectively. After flowering, currants are fertilized with liquid mullein or a solution of bird droppings.
In autumn, 100-120 g of superphosphate and 35-40 g of potassium chloride are added under each bush. Having processed the soil, a layer of mulch from a mixture of rotted manure and peat is laid on top of the trunk circle.

Irrigation

Red currant is one of the moderately moisture-loving plantings. Most of all, the need for regular watering occurs in summer, in hot weather. Also, constant moisture is required after flowering, when the first berries begin to ripen.

Watering plants is recommended in the early morning or after sunset, so that most of the water has time to penetrate to the roots. In order to keep the earth in the near-stem circle longer moistened, as an additional measure, you can resort to mulching. When using mulch, there is no need to loosen and weed the soil.

Cutting

Red currant fruit buds grow at the base of young shoots and small prunings on old branches. Due to the peculiarities of bud formation, the crop grows in equal proportions on both young and old branches. Compared to black currant, red currant formation is less common.

The optimal number of branches of different ages on one plant is 15-20. To do this, it is necessary to leave 2-4 young shoots each year after planting seeds or a mature seedling, growing in different directions. All other stepchildren are circumcised.

The fruiting period of shoots reaches 6-8 years, after which they need to be removed.

In the process of crown formation, it is also necessary to cut down damaged, drying out and low-yielding branches. You can identify old branches by visual evidence - they always have a darker shade. Pruning is carried out in late autumn or early spring. In summer, it is enough just to pinch the bases of young shoots.

Formation of bushes on the trellis

Using a trellis at the dacha increases productivity, promotes enlargement of berries, ensures friendly ripening, and simplifies pest control. You can make a trellis near the boundaries of the site, avoiding places where the shadow falls. The design can be made from different materials by placing 3 rows of wire at a height of 50, 100, 150 cm.

The bushes are planted under the trellis, deepening 10 cm more than usual.In the second year after planting, powerful shoots are left and tied to a wire. With further growth, the skeletal branches are pruned moderately, preventing strong growth. Over time, old branches are removed and replaced with new shoots.

Formation of standard currant

When growing standard varieties of currants, several features must be taken into account. Including:

shrubs can be placed at a distance of about 30 cm from each other;
cuttings with one bud at the top are suitable as seedlings;
bushes can grow in one place and bear fruit for more than 15 years.

The formation of standard varieties consists in periodically cutting off extra stepchildren and pinching the tops. The lack of root shoots leads to a decrease in productivity.

Prophylactic treatments for diseases and insects

To protect currant bushes from diseases and damage by harmful insects, preventive treatments are required. Spraying is carried out according to step-by-step instructions in several stages:

after the snow melts, the fallen leaves are removed from under the bushes, the topsoil is loosened and treated with copper sulphate;
at the time of budding, plantings are sprayed with Bordeaux liquid with a concentration of 3%;
during the ripening of fruits and after picking berries, use 1% Bordeaux mixture.

Organic and chemical preparations help save plantings from pest damage. Among natural remedies for processing currants, the following are common: soap solution, herbal preparations, infusion of tobacco, garlic or onion peel. If there are signs of insect damage on foliage and branches, it is advisable to use more powerful preparations, for example, colloidal sulfur solution, Karbofos and Vofatoks insecticides.

Wintering bushes

Despite the frost resistance of red currants, in regions with a cool climate, it is worth covering plants for the winter. The use of shelter allows you to create favorable conditions for the preservation of plants at temperatures below -25 degrees. Agrofibre can be used as a material for planting protection.

If severe frosts are expected, you can additionally use mineral wool. The material is wrapped around each branch separately.

It is also allowed to leave the bushes for the winter under natural snow cover. To do this, the branches are bent as close to the ground as possible so that in winter they are completely under the snow. Placement near the ground will contribute to the heating of the branches and protect against through blowing.

How to plant red currants

The process of planting currants allows you to gradually increase the number of shrubs on the site. During each season, new branches grow on the plants, which need to be cut and planted in new places for rooting. If you do not plant currants, excessive thickening will have a bad effect on fruiting, size and taste of berries.

Methods of breeding red currants

Red currant breeding is carried out mainly vegetatively - by dividing the bush, layering or cuttings. The seed method is used in rare cases, since the berries do not inherit all the characteristics of the variety.

In order to prevent the spread of diseases as a result of currant cultivation, it is important to pay attention to growing he althy planting material. The preparation of layers and cuttings should be carried out from special mother liquors. The mother seedlings are located in isolation from other plantations, including wild currants.

After propagating the bushes, the rooted shoots are followed by standard care, including watering, mulching, weed removal and preventive protective spraying. In a few years, new plants begin to bear fruit, and old ones gradually lose their productivity and must be dug up.