This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
Pruning blackcurrant bushes?
Sally Trusselle
Posts: 2
in Fruit & veg
We have an old black currant bush in our new garden that barely produced anything this year. I know that the fruit comes on the previous years growth but is it worth giving it a hard prune now to encourage new growth next year and sacrifice a years fruit? Lots of the leaves are discoloured and it doesn't look to healthy at all.
0
Posts
I normally prune by cutting out the fruited stems to make picking the fruit easier and this produces a natural renewal cycle. However that clearly won't work in your case.
I suggest you wait till all the leaves have dropped and then take a careful look and cut out, as low as possible, any broken or damaged stems as well as any that cross others and rub against them. Then take out a third of the remaining stems to make n open, goblet shape if possible. This will allow air to circulate and rain to penetrate for a healthier shrub.
Come spring, give it a generous handful of blood, fish and bone lightly forked in around the roots and a couple of liquid feeds of tomato food to encourage fruit and flowers.
This should produce flowers and fruit next year..
My bushes produced a huge amount of fruit this year. The oldest is 20 yr old, and the cuttings off it about 15. When they slow down or have a poor harvest I will start again with a new virus free bush from a good supplier. Old bushes often have viruses which reduce crops.
Chris Bowers has a good selection of blackcurrant bushes.
My bushes include 2 over 20 years old and the other 5 are their babies form cuttings. proper English blackcurrants and no virus or other problems and all producing bumper crops year after year.
.I think you could try renovating yours but, if you have room, plant a new one just in case - and prune and feed it appropriately every year.