Pots of Fruit

Blackcurrant Cutting Update

Back at the start of January I decided to try my hand at taking a blackcurrant cutting and I'm delighted to say that it's doing really well.  I'm a bit surprised that it is so easy to take cuttings but I suppose I'm beginning to realise that growing fruit isn't quite the mystery that one might think.  Back then it was just a stick with some buds on it but now it is a thriving little bush with plenty of flowers on it.

You might notice that there is a nettle growing in with this blackcurrant...well it's not by accident.  I have read that blackcurrants do well if planted near nettles so this one that seeded itself was just left there and is thriving too.  I'm beginning to get into the idea of companion planting a bit more lately as I realise that plants in isolation probably feel a little strange.  There are probably all sorts of reasons why plants prefer to be mixed in with other types of flowers, "weeds" or fruit and we probably don't even know about half of the reasons.  The nettle that is in this pot is certainly not holding back this young plant so I have sanctioned its presence completely.....stopping short of actually serving the residency papers to the nettle.

You can see all the little flowers on this guy in the photo on the left.  I was surprised to see flowers on one so young but who am I to complain.  In preparation of having some extra fruit I have put a little manure around the bottom of the pot.  Next winter I will replant it into a larger pot but for now I'm not going to disturb it.

I absolutely love the blackcurrant flowers as they are so simple and delicate looking, with their little petals curled back neatly. 

There has already been something gnawing at a branch at the top of the cutting so we are keeping a close eye on it to make sure no woodlice families move in, which would end up destroying the flowers. 

The leaves seemed to grow at the top of the cutting first and then gradually start to open all the way down the plant.  Some of these are still opening so the plant will fill out a lot more over the summer.  The important thing is that shoots grow from the base of the plant so as to provide the right kind of shape for best fruiting.  This idea of where the fruit grow best is still a bit confusing but I'm sure it will clear up over the next few years as I watch the plants grow.  But of course you will get fruit from any shaped bush, it's just a matter of getting the best out of a bush.  A couple more shoots will hopefully grow from beneath the soil level as I buried the cutting deep enough to bury some of its buds. 

When I transplant this little bush next winter I can plant it a little deeper than it is now if I need to (if there aren't enough shoots below soil level), so there's no panic for now.

Overall I'm delighted with this experiment and I'll certainly be taking some more cuttings next year.  I will also try to get a cutting from some one who has another blackcurrant bush and which may be an earlier variety.  If you want to spread out the amount of fruit you have over a longer time then it's a good idea to get varieties that fruit at different times.  That way you don't end up with more than you can use for a few weeks and then have none for the rest of the year. 

Blackcurrant Cuttings

Ever since we got our first blackcurrant bush about 2 years ago I've been waiting to take a cutting from it in order to increase the potential amount of fruit we enjoy.  Yesterday was the day.  New year's day.  It is recommended to take cutting in about October or November so that they will get a good chance to root before the next growing season, but I have been a bit lazy and only got round to it now.  You choose a good strong branch that has just grown in the current year.

I chose a branch that I would be removing anyway while pruning so as not to waste anything (the one with the arrow pointing at it).  I wanted to remove this branch so as to create an airy centre to the bush.  It seems to be important to allow plenty of air to circulate around a blackcurrant bush so as to prevent diseases.   I'm confused about pruning blackcurrant bushes after this and so I just left it alone.  I will be experimenting with my new bush in the future hopefully.

I read that you should cut the branch off just below a bud, making a horizontal cut.  It is important to have a good set of pruners so as not to tear the fibres thus preventing infection of the bush. 

Your cutting should be about 1ft (30cm) long.

Then you cut off the top piece of the branch, making a diagonal cut.  I did this just above the first good sized bud.

The reason you make a diagonal cut here is to facilitate rain water run off.  You don't want to make the cut too slanty though.  If you do this you will be increasing the area of exposed branch and this too can cause infection.  The one I did possibly could have been slightly less inclined.  When the rain falls on the top of the cutting it should flow off rather than sitting there encouraging rot.

You then either put the cutting into a trench in the ground or a pot like I have done.  As I don't know where I will be living next year I thought it would be better to go with the pot.  I used a mixture of old potting compost and garden soil.  This is one bit I'm not 100% sure of so I'll let you know how I get on!

Here is my garden supervisor and cleaner upper.  He follows us around in the garden as we disturb the soil, revealing plenty of lovely insects.  Bury the cutting to a depth of about 4 inches or 10cm, covering some buds in the process.  This encourages a multistemmed bush which is what you are looking for in a blackcurrant.  In other words more than one stem grows out from the ground. 

Your new cutting should be put somewhere not too sunny and a bit sheltered and left until very clear signs of growth appear.  I would leave it a whole year before disturbing just to make sure it has plenty of roots and will survive a transplant.  If you are doing this in a pot as I have done make sure the pot doesn't dry out at all.

Good luck and I'll let you know how I get on.

Blackcurrant Flowers and Woodlice

A few months ago as our blackcurrant bush was happily blossoming and promising a bountiful harvest I began to notice something very annoying.  The flowers were falling off just as quickly as they were developing.  This had also happened last year, in the bushes first season in our garden, and I had not figured out what the cause had been.  This year I decided that I had to figure it out fast or we wouldn't get a single fruit at all.

So, I pulled out my little garden stool and sat in front of the bush which is currently occupying a large car tyre.  I decided that the best way to deal with this was to listen to the bush.  By this I mean to let it tell me what to do.  Now, to be fair, I didn't think that the bush was actually going to speak to me but in some way I knew that if I listened properly I would get some sort of feedback from it, or maybe my own instincts would give me the feedback I required.  Either way I had tried this to a small degree on other plants and animals and it seemed to have worked. 

So I closed my eyes and listened.  At first I got the impression that there was nothing I could do, that the plant was doomed to be fruitless again this year.  Then my mind's eye started to move up and down the branch that was in front of me.  Up and down and up and down, making a vague spiral on each descent and ascent.  At first I had no idea how to interpret this but then my mind seemed to be shouting "open your eyes!".  At last I did this and there right in front of me were two woodlice walking down the length of the branch.  It hit me suddenly that they must be snapping the blossoms off.  Why they would do this I wasn't quite sure but it must have been them.  I watched another few walking up a different branch and then I looked at the top of the branches in question.  There, nestled in a tight bunch was what seemed like a little nest of woodlice, just beside the few blossoms that were left.  They were all mooching around and seemed to be very comfortable indeed.  I wasn't sure how to remove them because they were so tightly bunched in a cluster of new buds.  I took a chance and shook the branch fairly violently so that they starting to fly off in all directions.  I managed to clear them off the plant but knew they would return.  Luckily only a couple of the remaining blossoms had fallen off and the next day when I shook off the intruders again none of the blossoms fell off.  After a few days of shaking the woodlice didn't return and so the flowers turned to fruit which slowly ripened.  In total we had about 12 fruits, but at least we had some and now I know what to look out for next year. 

The fact that the bush is in a pot may cause it to be more susceptible to woodlice as they have plenty of places to live over the winter.  For example they would congregated under the pot or under the lip of the tyre at the top.  But maybe if I keep an eye on the plant from the start of spring I can prevent a build up, or maybe I could go and ask the blackcurrant if it has any advice :)

The fact that I got some insight into the problem by taking the time to just listen to the plant still surprises me but I intend to experiment more with this and see if I can get a better insight into all my fruit issues.  Where the information is coming from, while being an interesting question, is less important than the fact that it seems to be possible to find the solution to more things than we might give ourselves credit for.