Author Topic: Blackcurrant puzzle  (Read 2375 times)

Digeroo

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Blackcurrant puzzle
« on: October 04, 2017, 19:54:13 »
I have bought various black currant plants but in general they struggle.  I have lost several Ebony.  However the plants I grow from cuttings grow like weeds. I also have a casseille which is growing extraordinarily slowly, but my own cuttings of jostaberry are huge.

Can anyone suggest a reason for this.  For example: Do boughten plants come with their own Mycorrhizal fungus which compete with that already in the soil.  I am by an ancient hedge and I mean ancient so presume it has its own mix. 

I bought some bare rooted plants and pruned them as per instructions, and stuck the prunings in the ground and they are doing a lot better than the mother plants.  Since they are only about 1/2 a meter away, I just stuck them in between the plants there is very little difference in soil or light etc etc.

Plants that come with soil in a pot are almost doomed to failure, but cuttings taken from the very same plants do fine.  I am at a loss to understand what is going on. 

And using boughten Mycorrhizal  fungus, seems to be a total disaster.




Beersmith

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2017, 11:48:01 »
Very good questions. Indeed, so good that no one seems to be able to provide an answer.

There is one issue on which I heartily agree with your comments, and can offer some advice. That is concerning fruit bushes in pots. You would think that planting without disturbing the roots would work perfectly. But all too often the roots stay in a tight ball, and it takes a couple of seasons before the bush really begins to grow vigorously.

Having made this mistake a few times I am now very cautious and go to considerable lengths to tease apart the roots of bushes in pots. In cases, I  have even washed out the old soil / compost and pruned off some tightly bound roots (I am not sure this latter idea is recommended, try it at your own risk). But this seems to stimulate the roots to grow into the new soil much faster.

In response to your other questions though, alas I simply have no idea.

Cheers



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galina

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #2 on: October 05, 2017, 12:26:01 »
Just had an idea.  We are also on alkaline soil and often plants need quite some time to acclimatise.  A lot of soft fruit is raised in Scotland, where soils are generally more acid.  Could that account for it?  Cuttings from plants that have made the adjustment romp away, because they are used to lower ph values already?   :wave:


laurieuk

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #3 on: October 05, 2017, 14:39:30 »
Did you really soak the plants that were n pot  as I have known plants from containers that have stayed dry for a couple of years before dying.

ancellsfarmer

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #4 on: October 05, 2017, 19:16:17 »
Conceivably, what you are observing is the vigour of a new offspring as opposed to the slightly more sedate growth of a more mature plant. Given that they have little existing developed root structure, nor stem and branch, they can put all the available resource into new growth rather than maintaining the previous. The very benefit of pruning back older growth is to release this available 'energy' to maximize new growth. The cuttings I took from an overwintered 5 year old fuchsia not only grew faster than the similar shoots not taken , but produced more branching and earlier and heavier blooms . The compost was the same, the watering equal in frequency, just more vigour!
I am sure an equivalent could be drawn between human activity ,but its just too painful to countenance!!
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Borderers1951

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #5 on: October 11, 2017, 08:59:33 »
Two years ago I took six blackcurrant cuttings to be ready to go in my new plot and rooted them in small pots where I left them until the move.  All the cuttings survived and were planted at the end of last year when I took on the new plot.  This season they have established themselves quite well and I am looking forward to seeing what they give me next year.  I did the same with gooseberries but had to give the new plants away as I have several thriving bushes on my new plot.  I also did the same with redcurrants and they, too, look healthy in their new home.

ancellsfarmer

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #6 on: October 21, 2017, 17:30:33 »
Did you plant them out "deep" so that they threw new shoots this year, on which your fruit will appear next season?
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Paulh

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #7 on: October 22, 2017, 10:08:48 »
That's an interesting comment - a few years ago I planted out two cuttings that have been slow to establish but fruited much better this year, but that do not send up new shoots from below ground and behave more like (rather short-legged) standards. I'll know what to try next time!

Digeroo

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Re: Blackcurrant puzzle
« Reply #8 on: October 22, 2017, 19:38:09 »
I found a reference to feeding blackcurrant in the autumn and have found that this seems to stimulate bud production low down on the plants which then take off early the next year.   Blackcurrants seem to like a lot of feeding.  I also follow the late great Geoffrey Smith and prune out as much as possible of the fruiting stems after picking.  He said pick, prune, feed and I have always done well this way.


 

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