Imagine a situation: you purchased a summer cottage where the previous owners have already cultivated fruit and berry wealth. Isn't it wonderful? True, currants and gooseberries look like that for 15-20 years, they are affected by diseases and pests, and they give little fruit.
And yet, I want to save those old currant or gooseberry varieties, because today it is difficult to find such. In this situation, only one way is possible - the resuscitation of the bushes. In this article, we will more touch on the topic of rejuvenating the currant berry, although the same methods are suitable for both gooseberries and honeysuckle.
If you do not carry out periodic pruning, currants already after 6-7 years significantly reduce productivity, and their ability to fight diseases and pests also decreases. The ideal of a currant bush is about twenty branches of different ages, including 3-4 last year's shoots. The largest number of fruit buds is formed on the stems for 2-4 years, which is why many gardeners completely remove branches that are more than four years old.
Anti-aging pruning aims to form a shrub that is closest to the ideal, so that in the future it is easy to inhibit thickening and aging.
Currant rejuvenation in several stages
Six to eight-year-old plants are advised to rejuvenate gradually, spending about three years on it. Such pruning will make it possible to collect, albeit low, but still harvest, and at the same time remove old branches.
In the fall of each next year, you need to get rid of a third of the old bush. It will be optimal to cut the shoots to the very ground, so that there are no long stumps that become breeding grounds for pests. It is better to process the sections with ash. The next year, in parallel with the rejuvenating procedure, you can already carry out planned pruning, which is needed for the development of a young bush.
Currant rejuvenation by radical pruning
This rejuvenating method involves cutting the bush completely, "to zero". With its help, you can give a second life even to very inferior "oldies" - plants at the age of 8-15 years.
In the spring, as soon as the snow melts, or at the end of autumn, you need to remove all the shoots almost to the soil surface. If small, three to four centimeter stumps remain, it's not scary. During autumn pruning, it is advisable to mulch the ground around the plant and the cuts themselves with straw or the remaining tops. This is necessary so that the roots of the currant do not freeze. When a radical operation is performed in the spring, it is recommended to spill the soil with a solution of "Fitosporin", and after a few weeks feed it with mullein infusion (we dilute one in ten) or herbal fertilizer. Such procedures, carried out two or three more times per season, will perfectly saturate the currants with nutrients.
Hibernating basal buds will receive an impetus for development and discard young stems. Of these, you need to choose the 5-7 strongest ones, cut out all the others - that is, the actions are the same as when forming a young bush from a seedling. Two years after radical pruning, the plant will delight you with a decent harvest.
Annual rejuvenation of currants
Suddenly, the currant berry at your dacha is very large, or the technology of planned pruning seems too complicated to you, take this method of annual rejuvenation of your plants into service.
Using your imagination, divide the bush into four, and completely remove the fourth of the shoots every spring or fall. This is how you annually free the plant from stems that are more than four years old. The currant bush will always be young, and the berries will be large and numerous.
In the end, it should be noted that currant rejuvenation is possible without pruning. Just take cuttings from the strongest and healthiest stems, root, and then plant in a new place. Uproot the old bush and forget about it.
