Features of growing black currant

Cultivation of black currant is widespread in almost all regions of our country because of its delicious healthy berries. It can be grown without any difficulty in sandy soil, which retains moisture well, is well drained. This plant does not tolerate heavy clay, but can produce good yields on all types of moist soil, provided that it contains a sufficient amount of organic matter.

It should be noted that black currant requires a lot of nitrogen when growing, it prefers soil with acidity - the pH range is from 6.7 to 7 - it cannot tolerate acidic soils. In addition, it gives a small crop if grown in places open to winds. Although this plant has the ability to tolerate temperatures up to -20 ° C, but the flowers are damaged when the temperature drops to -1 ° C - fruits with such damages are not tied.

Black currant in the Kuban very early in the growing season. The buds awaken in early March. Flowering takes place in the first or second decade of April, when the air temperature exceeds + 8-10 ° C and lasts 7-12 days. It depends on the peculiarities of the black currant variety, weather conditions. Flowering can be shifted to earlier or later periods of 8-15 days.

Good preservation of flowers and their pollination is one of the important conditions for obtaining the crop. In the black currant flowers of the correct form are bisexual, with a five-fold calyx, five petals, five stamens and pistils. Fertilization occurs when pollen from bursting anthers on the stigma of the pistil. Yield depends on normal pollination. Very often, black currant blooms profusely, but there is no harvest. Ovaries fall off after 2-3 weeks after flowering, that is, fertilization does not occur. What is the reason?

It turns out that black currant varieties are self-fertile and cross-pollinated. Self-fertile are well pollinated by their pollen or pollen of their varieties. Despite the fact that the variety is self-fertile, cross-pollination is also possible, and with cross-pollination on self-bearing bushes, larger berries are obtained, and the crop is higher.

Self-fertilizing varieties( cross-pollinating) are not pollinated by their pollen, but pollinated only by pollen from other pollinator varieties. For them, certain conditions are needed: the presence of a number of planted pollinating varieties, the attraction of bees, and other pollinating insects. To do this, during flowering, it is necessary to spray the bushes with honey solution( 100 g of honey per 1 liter of water).Honey aroma attracts bees, bumblebees, other insects that work even in windy weather. This contributes to a better cross-pollination of flowers, the setting of berries.

Spraying flowering black currant bushes with a solution of potassium permanganate 1.5 g + boric acid 1.5 g per 10 liters of water is also effective for high-grade pollination. It is very important in the garden plots to have self-fertile varieties that are capable of pollinating, tying berries in adverse weather conditions during flowering. All varieties of black currant ripen in the month of June, only very late varieties sometimes ripen in the first decade of July. The weather conditions for growth and ripening of berries in May-June are quite favorable, that is, the harvest depends on gardeners, on their caring, protective measures on their plots.

Most blackcurrant varieties are highly winter-hardy, withstand temperatures of 40 degrees, even lower, the kidneys are not damaged. But during its flowering period in the Kuban, unfavorable weather conditions often develop: rainy, windy weather, which makes it difficult for years of pollinating insects;low positive air temperatures during the day;return spring frosts at night, at which damage to the flowers occurs, young ovaries in unstable varieties.

To increase the stability of black currants to such adverse conditions, it is necessary to prepare bushes in the fall. Under the digging or loosening of the soil should be applied phosphate-potassium fertilizers, ash. If autumn is dry, conduct watering. Plant in several varieties, place their pollinating varieties next to low self-fertile varieties. Instead of varieties that are not resistant to returnable spring frosts, for example, Belarusian sweet, plant highly resistant ones that can withstand frosts during the flowering period down to -5 ° C.These varieties brought Russian breeders, many of them in the Kuban. Here are some of them: Altayanka, Grape, Dobrynya, Raisin, Lyubava, Nara, Gift to Kuminov, Sevchanka, Selechenskaya-2, others.

Black currant belongs to the winter-hardy berry plants. New varieties bred with the participation of Siberian wild species have a higher winter hardiness. It makes lowering the air temperature to -40 ° C and below. In Kuban conditions, black currant does not suffer from frosts or low temperatures, but from temperature differences in winter — when the air temperature first rises to + 10 ° C and then drops sharply to -10 ° C and below. From such changes in temperature, freezing of flower buds in mixed buds can occur.

During the flowering period, blackcurrant suffers from returning spring frosts in some years. Its growing season begins at a temperature of + 6 ° C, and in some varieties at + 2 ° C.The optimum temperature for the growth of bushes + 18-22 ° C.In hotter weather, their growth slows down or even completely stops.

Black currant when growing quite demanding of lighting conditions. In the shade, it gives a very low yield, more damaged by diseases, pests. But new shade-tolerant varieties that grow well, bear fruit in shaded places.

In Kuban, black currant does not tolerate heat, dry air, and strong solar radiation, especially in July and August. With strong heat, dry weather, the leaves begin to burn from the edges, can completely dry the tops of the bushes in many varieties. During the heat, the root system suffers greatly from overheating of the soil, the lack of moisture, its active activity decreases sharply, root hairs, small roots in the upper soil layer die off and dry out. Black currant bushes are attacked by pests, diseases( aphids, mites, powdery mildew, and others).At the same time there is a bookmark, the formation of buds on the shoots. Naturally, without the intervention of gardeners to reduce the impact of adverse weather conditions on the life of bushes, buds on the shoots very little is formed, they are weak, the harvest for the next year is very low.

To reduce overheating of the soil, preserving the root system, leaves from drying out in July-August, it is necessary to systematically water the bushes, mulch the soil with any materials( humus, straw, grass, cardboard, others).It is necessary to use natural protection from the sun, to place black currant bushes in partial shade behind buildings, trees, so that during lunch hours( from 11 to 16 hours) they are protected from the sun.

In the conditions of the south, black currant grows well, fruits in partial shade, most varieties suffer from excessive solar radiation, heat. In the Kuban, despite the fact that the day is shorter than in many other regions of Russia, the amount of light coming to the leaves is greater, that is, the total physiologically active solar radiation is higher. Therefore, even in the penumbra, the leaves of black currant receive enough light rays for photosynthesis. And excessive solar radiation, high temperature intensify the process of respiration, evaporation of moisture from the leaves goes faster than it is served by the roots. The leaves burn, black currant bushes are depleted in the responsible period of bookmarking and the formation of flowering buds. Therefore, there is a need to look for various methods, to protect the bushes from the hot sun, to create a chill for them, to reduce the evaporation of moisture from the leaves.

Good results in protecting blackcurrant bushes from direct sun in July-August are provided by tall plants - tomatoes, corn, sorghum, and others. They are planted on the south side of the bushes at a distance of 40-50 cm from the crown. By July, they grow up to 2 meters high, so they are well protected black currants, take all the heat of the sun to themselves. You can make temporary( for July-August) sunscreens. Stretch rope or wire on high stakes 2.5-3 meters, hang black foil or old sheets. Placing screens should be next to the crown of bushes on the south side. All these techniques allow us to preserve the active life of the bushes in July-August, to reduce the adverse effect of heat, drought on the formation of the harvest next year.

Many new varieties of black currant are drought and heat resistant, tolerate Kuban heat, drought, grow in open sunny places, do not require protection. For example, Altayanka, Gulliver, Grape, Venus, Harmony, Shadriha, Dessert, Olkhina, Gracia, Green Haze, Black Pearl, others. For many gardeners of Kuban, such varieties of black currant are simply necessary, especially with a lack of water for irrigation of bushes.