Overgrown Blackcurrant Pruning Help

WeirdoMagnet

Hello,

I'm normally a browser on here, but have just bought our first house with a long (130ft) but thin-ish garden, and now we've chopped bits back, and can see the wood for the trees, I need your help!

The garden has been planted with lots of shrubs, but never really managed. We've got a huge blackcurrant bush, which did have a handful of very small fruits when we first moved in 6 weeks ago. It's about 6 feet talk, 5 feet wide and has about five main stalks, each up to an inch diameter. I've looked up on google about pruning it, but they're all about putting a new bush in and maintaining it, rather than sorting out an overgrown mess! They also talk about old 'black' wood, but this bush doesn't seem to have any?!

What should I do, and when?!

Georgina

A._Badger

Georgina wrote: »

Hello,

I'm normally a browser on here, but have just bought our first house with a long (130ft) but thin-ish garden, and now we've chopped bits back, and can see the wood for the trees, I need your help!

The garden has been planted with lots of shrubs, but never really managed. We've got a huge blackcurrant bush, which did have a handful of very small fruits when we first moved in 6 weeks ago. It's about 6 feet talk, 5 feet wide and has about five main stalks, each up to an inch diameter. I've looked up on google about pruning it, but they're all about putting a new bush in and maintaining it, rather than sorting out an overgrown mess! They also talk about old 'black' wood, but this bush doesn't seem to have any?!

What should I do, and when?!

Georgina

The aim with black currants is to stimulate new growth - ideally from below ground, though this isn't always as easy as the books will lead you to believe.

Either way, you need to be pretty ruthless and cut out at least a third of the old wood. Prune to an outward facing bud, where possible, low down near the ground.

Around February (depending on where you live) apply a good general fertiliser (Growmore or Blood, Fish and Bone will do fine) and then mulch the bush with compost.

If you aim to remove around a third of the oldest wood each year, you should get back to the balance you want after a few years.

There is a school of thought that would say take the whole bush down to ground level if it's really overgrown like that, but that's a last ditch move, in my book. And anyway, if a bush is that bad it's probably old enough to need replacing altogether.

Hope that's some help.

WeirdoMagnet

Thanks - Can I do it now, or should I wait until it looses it's leaves?

wyldeflower

I used to keep Blackcurrants and you can do it now if you like or leave it till early spring dont worry about it to much as they are quite hardy and keep growing and growing.You can make your own herb tea with the leaves..so they are mega useful

WeirdoMagnet

Great - I can't wait to chop it back! Don't think I could wait until Spring!

DogsBody

Do you want to keep the blackcurrant where it is and get it back into production? Like everyone has already said, they are generally tough as old boots and can take quite harsh pruning. However, the size you describe doesn't seem excessive for a mature b/c, they are pretty vigorous (I have two bushes from cuttings that I planted in the ground after 1 year in pots and they are already about 4 foot up, across and sideways!!!). If you are worried about killing it with harsh pruning, take some cuttings first (or look around the edges of the existing bush for natural 'layers' that have set from the parent plant). Then get the machete out

At least then you'll have 'insurance' if the original plant doesn't make it!:)

WeirdoMagnet

Thanks for all your advice. I was ruthless, and chopped it right back - it has two chances!

However, found another overgrown bush in the corner this morning which has a lable on it - Ribes Sang 'White Icicle', not sure if they were both the same and I mis-ID'd the blackcurrant! Oh well, looks like the Ribes can take a harsh pruning too!