So the golden autumn came: berries are picked, jam and fruit drinks are cooked. It's time to “thank” your favorite berry bushes and lay the foundation for a good future harvest. How to prepare currant bushes for winter? Care in the fall for currants what is it? These and other questions worry many gardeners. Some make a huge mistake when they keep currant care to a minimum due to the fact that they consider this crop quite unpretentious.
In doing so, they will have to simply uproot the bush and plant a new one in a few years. They, apparently, simply do not realize that the currant bushes are able to grow and bear fruit in one place for 15 years or more. All you need is to properly care for, "groom" and "cherish" your "favorites." We will tell you how to prepare currant bushes for winter and how to care for this crop in the autumn. Listen to our tips and tricks.
Blackcurrant Care Highlights in Autumn
In September, October and November, it is necessary to carry out a number of simple, but necessary measures for berry crops:
- pruning branches;
- competent tillage around the bushes;
- fertilizer replenishment;
- plentiful watering;
- treatment from insects and pathogens;
- mulching.
Start with cropping
So, how to prepare the currant bushes for winter. When to trim? It can be performed either in spring or in autumn. You decide when to do it. But, keep in mind that pruning in the fall has many advantages:
- Flower currant buds begin to move (that is, blossom) quite early. After this process has begun, it is not worthwhile to carry out any manipulations with the bushes: there is a great danger of damaging the branches and roots.
- During this period, sap flow is suspended. Therefore, the removal of unnecessary branches will take place at the bush painlessly and without undesirable consequences.
- In the autumn, when the entire crop has already been harvested, gardeners have plenty of time to carry out such activities.
General recommendations for trimming
Pruning a bush is a very important procedure, which fully plays a major role in the formation of a berry bush in the future. If you do not remove the branches systematically, then the currant will thicken too much, begin to develop poorly, and then completely cease to exist. Here are some guidelines:
- We trim with a well-sharpened pruner or garden saw, so as not to injure the rest of the plant.
- We carry out the slice very close to the base of the bush and produce it at an angle of 45 degrees at a distance of about 0.5 cm above the living kidney of the culture.
- We cut not only old, giving poor harvest branches (that is, stems whose age exceeded 4 years), overgrown root shoots, but also all diseased and damaged shoots. In addition, we remove the stems that grow inside the bush, fall too low to the ground or interfere with the growth of neighboring plants.
Important! We leave no more than 8-10 rather powerful stems on the bush. In adult bushes, we shorten the branches (1/3 to awaken the underground buds).
We continue to figure out how to prepare currant bushes for winter. All trimmed material must be destroyed in any way possible: either we burn it or take it away from the site (this is an important manipulation). If you do not, then you risk breeding pests that quickly leave their old homes under the bark of cut branches and move to new places for wintering. And in the spring with renewed vigor they will begin to destroy the sprouts of the new crop. Do not allow this.
That is, cropping is one of the highlights. So, you have already partially received the answer to the question of how to prepare blackcurrant bushes for winter.
From feeding, nothing and no one will refuse
To be sure that the plants successfully survive such a difficult period as winter, it is necessary to feed the bushes at the right time and in the right amount. The principle of an integrated approach, strict adherence to deadlines and dosages applies here.
So how to prepare the currant bushes for the winter correctly? Why is it necessary to fertilize in the fall? Because in the process of their decomposition (within 3-4 months), currants will receive a certain amount of nutrients in time for spring. We divide (conditionally) the entire feeding process into four stages:
- First. We bring potash-phosphorus fertilizers, which are "long-playing". Summer residents with extensive experience in horticultural work are advised to use them in granules. The quantity is determined by the type and composition of the soil. We recommend that you adhere to the standards specified in the instructions on the packaging and avoid overdose. On average, 40-50 g of superphosphate, 30 g of potassium chloride, 8-10 g of phosphorus and 40 g of potassium sulfate are accounted for one bush.
On a note! We apply fertilizer just before the cold. If you do it earlier, the plant will “taste” all the additives and begin to grow rapidly. At the first frost, this can lead to the death of the bush.
- Second. Almost before the most frosts we introduce (at a distance of 25-30 cm from the center of the culture) nitrogen-containing fertilizers (compost, rotted manure or chicken droppings).
- Third. We produce abundant watering (about 25-35 liters of water for each bush).
- Fourth. We carry out the filling around the bushes, performing the role of mulch. Under each plant with a layer (10 cm thick) pour 1 bucket of the mixture (sawdust and peat) plus 1 glass of ash (wood and sifted).
Important! We do not recommend using coal ash for these purposes.
Soil condition under the bush is also important
Regarding the processing of near-stem currant circles, the opinions of gardeners and gardeners vary significantly. Some adhere to traditional methods and advocate for digging the soil under the bushes in the fall. The argument is the assertion that the earth, dug up on the bayonet of a shovel (with a flip of the layer) is the cause of the destruction of larvae and harmful insects. What exactly needs to be done:
- We remove all fallen leaves under the bush.
- We disinfect the soil with a solution of potassium permanganate, vitriol or laundry soap (well, where without it).
- We make the necessary fertilizers.
- Digging (without fanaticism).
Others, on the contrary, protest against such works, limiting themselves only to mulching trunks in compost, straw, or leaves. They argue their position with the desire to preserve the air-capillary system of the soil. Maybe they are right.
The opinion of the third is contrary to the convictions of the first and second. They can be attributed to the "minimalists" who are trying to use every piece of land. Trunk circles are no exception : lawn grass is just sown under them. And what is beautiful. In autumn, it is enough to remove fallen leaves and that’s all: you can relax. Simple and tasteful. That is, they don’t bother at all about soil cultivation. How to prepare currant bushes for the winter in full, they are also not interested.
We protect against pests
Some believe that the most effective way to combat all kinds of pests and diseases are: a seven percent solution of Karbofos and a one percent mixture of Bordeaux fluid.
Advice! Before carrying out chemical treatment, we remove all debris and fallen leaves from under the bushes. And one more thing: we carry out such work in dry and calm weather.
Opponents of chemical preparations are sure that for pest control it is enough to dig the soil under the bush (necessarily with a layer turnover).
Watering currants in autumn
Many have already understood how to prepare currant bushes for winter. By the way, here you can’t do without watering. Because the volume of water pumped into the soil in the fall will determine the degree of cold resistance of the crop and the quality of the crop next year. Naturally, if it rains constantly, then the need for watering automatically disappears. Keep track of the weather and precipitation. When watering, we advise you to be guided by the following recommendations:
- Along the circumference of the bush (10-15 cm from the center) we make grooves (15-20 cm deep).
- Pour about 2-3 buckets of water under each plant. We pour the liquid exclusively into the prepared channels so that a large amount of water does not erode the soil above the root system.
Mulching currants
We constantly mulch currants, starting immediately after planting and the first watering. We do this using peat, sawdust, compost or fallen leaves. Do not neglect this at all, since mulch protects the plant from drying out.
Finally
So, we answered the question of how to properly prepare the currant bushes for winter. This information will not be superfluous to anyone. After all, it is not difficult to do the above actions, and they will not take so much time: moreover, the result is worth it.