First line of action is to prune out these older branches which have borne fruit over the last 3 or 4 years. Redcurrants produce fruit on what is termed old wood. Best pruned when dormant. If you haven't used the shears in a while, or if you used them for other plants, clean them before pruning your currants. Foliage – deciduous Flowering – April-May. Trimming the newer stems will help encourage growth and give you a bushier plant. Euonymus (evergreen) - trim to shape in spring - or cut back hard if required. Redcurrants and whitecurrants do not need the hard pruning that is recommended for Blackcurants and a framework of growth is left in place. You cannot prune them the same way you'd prune blackcurrants, however. The right time to prune a red currant bush is towards the end of winter, ideally during the months of February-March. Harvesting. Red and white currants will fruit at the base of shoots, known as ‘laterals’, that grow out from the main branches. The key thing to remember is to prune the bush in the winter so that the middle is hollow. Another reason you don't want the stems to hang too close to the ground is because they might get tangled up in weeds. Currants lose their leaves early in the more southern reaches of their range, so if you've had a spell of hot, dry weather, it may be the reason for the sad looking leaves. Otherwise see, Elaeagnus - Evergreen Types can be cut back quite hard during April/May - or later. By Monty Don for MailOnline… By using our site, you agree to our. You can use these methods to prune white currants and gooseberries as well. Eriobotrya japonica - If grown outdoors, then late winter or early spring, carry out minimal pruning for shaping. Flowering currant can be pruned after flowering in April or May. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. They need fairly severe pruning to cause the plant to form evenly spaced branches that allow air and sunlight in but are nice and strong for fruit production. I have a bed approx 15ft x 4ft and it's full of currant bushes, a mixture of black, red and white. This article has been viewed 21,294 times. Removing them means that your plant will get more water and nutrients. Nitrogen is the key to good growth especially with regularly pruned bushes. Prune in winter to leave between eight and ten healthy, strong main branches each year. Established blackcurrants are at least 1 year old and have already had fruit. Red currant (Ribes nigrum) is an upright small sized deciduous shrub that fruits mid Summer. Easy to care for, planting and pruning will help you boost its growth and bear beautiful flowers. Last Updated: July 13, 2019 Leaders should be pruned to outward facing buds unless the branches are bending, in which case they then should be cut to upward facing buds. There is one very important thing to realize about red currants fruiting, and once you fully realise that, then the pruning is a simple matter and everything falls into place! Branches which are more than 3 years old, will still produce fruit, but it will be of poorer quality. Red currants produce most fruit on two and three year old wood. Although red currant bushes can withstand some neglect, no pruning for four years probably means little or no fruit has been harvested through the summer months. If you trimmed off a dead or diseased stem, then you need to clean the shears after each cut that you make. All pruning carried out in the first couple of years creates the form of the plant. For me, they tasted much better, though the slightly acidic taste does not appeal to all. In the first three winters, cut all but two or three stems back to the ground surface. Get the pruning right at the right time and red currants are hardly ever a problem. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Depending on the condition of the plant, various pruning methods can be applied. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. Both tools need to be sharp so that they leave behind a nice, clean cut. If you planted the bush in fall, however, you should definitely wait until spring before pruning. Remove the branches with the heavy crops (2 year olds), and leave the … Pruning could not be more straightforward with forsythia and flowering currant. In late autumn or winter, after leaf fall, prune back the same side shoots to one or two buds. Blackcurrants are pruned in a similar way, but they fruit on wood that’s 1-2 years old, so any branches that are older than this can be removed. This is called heading back and is always done to a healthy bud. Pruning in April-May. The pruning can either be a general trim back to shape - but bear in mind that growth will be quite rapid after pruning, so a light prune might not be enough. Get a pair of good-quality pruning loppers and secateurs. 5 Productivity hacks you NEED for working from home. Name – Ribes sanguineum Family – Grossulariaceae Type – shrub. Height – 3 to 10 feet (1 to 3 m) Exposure – full sun Soil – ordinary. In most cases, pruning in late winter will be just fine. Unlike blackcurrants, redcurrants grow best on older stems. Choose the site according to that written above, and plant into hole with a good helping of potting compost or rotted organic matter. Wood produced in the current year, is classed as new wood, but of course next year it is classed as old wood! If planted in rows, allow for plenty of space between each bush, for they will grow to around 1.2m (4ft) across. Harvest fruit when ripe, will freeze well. Regular supply of new shoots (canes) is the desired end result, so Get involved The Royal Horticultural Society is the UK’s leading gardening charity. In simple terms no part of your fruit bush should ever be over 4 years old, the complete structure is constantly being renewed by annual pruning. Red currant bushes are fruitful additions to landscapes. Pests which Affect Redcurrant Aphids (General) Common Gooseberry Sawfly Slug Harvested fruits are bet used immediately â or can be stored for a while in the fridge or even frozen in the freezer. References Prune out old wood rigorously, as close to ground level as possible. If you don't do this, you risk transferring the infection. Space also allows for sunlight and full ripening of all the fruits down the branches, for well grown plats will positively droop with clusters of berries. The reason for this being that it is far better to have the life-giving sap rising into the branches that you wish to keep rather than the branches you are going to cut off! Planting and Harvesting Calendar < Back to All Plants. How to Prune Redcurrants Thanks.". If your plant is in a pot, water it with liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks between late winter and early spring. Red Currants are pruned differently to Black Currants. Key Flowering currant facts. Older stems are darker and thicker, while younger ones are thinner and paler. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. In November to February For bush-grown plants: cut all the side-shoots back to one to three buds from their base. Wait until after you have harvested the fruit and the foliage has fallen to prune the bushes, ideally in late fall or early winter. Arbutus - The strawberry tree does not grow strawberries - just fruit that look like strawberries! You may want to rejuvenate the bush. Please help us continue to provide you with our trusted how-to guides and videos for free by whitelisting wikiHow on your ad blocker. Redcurrants will produce good quality fruit on a branch for no more than 3 years after which it deteriorates. Thanks. I favoured the redcurrant at home as a child, as I could more easily and secretly pick a small handful â rather than black currants. How and when to do it. In this video you will learn the simple steps you need to take to prune a blackcurrant bush. Approved. Winter! You are essentially cutting about a third of the stem off. They flower in spring to early summer with the berries cropping from mid to late summer depending upon season. Gooseberries and red or white currants are pruned in the same way. So, pruning earlier is better – around March or April at the latest. If they tear through the stems, the wound won't heal as quickly or as neatly. Prune bushes by removing diseased or very old branches in winter, then prune new growth back to two buds in early summer to keep plants compact. Leaves grow on thin stems, so a pair of pruning shears or secateurs should be large enough to cut through them. Q How do I prune gooseberries, white currants and red currants? Red currant bushes, although fairly easy to care for, do require pruning. Currant affairs: Red, white or black, the best currants are those picked from your own bush, and there's no better time to plant one . A good spray at first sign with a fruit-friendly insecticide will do the trick once they have taken hold. Any new branches which are sagging should be removed in favour of the upright canes. Therefore, pruning should be aimed at maximising the fruiting wood. Ribes rubrum - to give it its proper botanical name â also has a variant with white coloured fruits., realistically named the Whitecurrant! At planting, cut all the canes back to four or six buds. Black currants have different pruning requirements than red and white currants. Apart from pruning, red, white, and black currants have the same growing and care requirements. Planting can take place almost any time in the year â as they are often sold as container grown, or containerized plants. This is done by selecting one third of the branches, divided evenly over the bush, and cutting these back to a height of about 50 cm. Pruning red and white currants Initial Pruning – Remove any suckers from the base of the plant. After harvesting prune the bush back to five leaves on each side shoot and remove any dead or overcrowded branches to 'open up' the plant. 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