Currants are a rare, shade-tolerant
fruit that form the basis for many mouth-watering dishes few Americans are
familiar with. These smaller relatives of gooseberries, which are
cultivated in much the same way and add a brilliant tone of red to the
garden, weren’t always as unknown in America as they are today. English
settlers brought the tart red currant to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in
1693 and housewives were soon using it to make jams, jellies that were
served with venison, pies, pastries, and boiled puddings. Wrote poet
Richard Hughes in the early 1600s:
Puddings should be
Full of currants, for me:
Boiled in a pail,
Tied in the tail
Of an old bleach shirt:
So hot that they hurt.
Europeans were enjoying currents long before Americans, of course, but the
fruit was a wild one until the 1500s, when it began to be cultivated for
the first time in the Netherlands, Denmark, and around the Baltic Sea. The
currant got its name in a rather roundabout way, having been named, in
fact, after a variety of raisin. It seems that in the fourteenth century
Corinth, Greece, was the chief port for exporting seedless raisins dried
from a small variety of grape grown in eastern Mediterranean lands. These
raisins were originally called raisins of Corauntz—Corauntz being the
Anglo-French pronunciation for Corinth—and finally Corauntz, was corrupted
to currants. The black, red, and white berries of the Ribes family that
are known today as currants were given the same name as the raisins
because the plant clusters of the black variety of Ribes look something
like the small grapes that were made into raisins of Corauntz.
Strangely enough, the currant’s family name, Ribes, also stems from a
confusion of identities. Ribes derives form the Arabic ribas, a rhubarb
grown by the Arabs in Lebanon as a medicinal essence. When in the early
eighth century, the Arabs conquered Spain and found themselves without
their rusty ribas, they looked for something to replace rhubarb and
selected currants and gooseberries, which they also called ribas.
Black currants (Ribes nigrum) have never been as esteemed by American
gourmets as red and white currants; in fact, centuries ago they were
thought to breed worms in the human stomach. But they are high in vitamin
C and have had many therapeutic properties attributed to them over the
years, having been recommended for arthritis, gout, and dropsy, among
other complaints. The black fruit has sweet, reddish flesh; a famous
concoction made from it is the French cassis de Dijon, an internationally
famous liqueur.
Red and white currants are also high in vitamin C and have been considered
refreshing medicines as well as a cure for dysentery. Tart, but sometimes
eaten out of hand, the berries are mostly used in making jelly, preserves,
syrup, and currant wine. The English used to make a dish called “laid
pudding” in pre-Reformation days that consisted of layers of raisins and
red currants alternating with delicious, custard-soaked teacakes. Yet the
most famous dish made from red and white currants has to be the seedless
currant jelly once laboriously made professional “seeders” employing a
goose feather to delicately pick out the currant seeds one by one without
damaging the berries. The jelly used to be a gourmet delicacy made only in
Bar-le-Duc, France, on the banks of the Meuse, and ever since 1559, when
Mary Stuart, later Mary Queen of Scots, was given a jar of the rare jelly,
it was presented to every visiting chief of state. But just five years ago
its last manufacturer went out of business as a result of prohibitive
labor costs, and the gastronomical rarity is no more.
Though currants, like gooseberries, aren’t exactly the rage in America,
they are being planted more frequently presently than at any time since
colonial days. Very easy to grow, they take up little room, make
incomparable jellies, among other good dishes, and are well worth a try in
every home garden. Remember, however, that currants—especially the black
currant—can harbor the fungus that causes white pine blister and cannot be
planted in certain areas (see Gooseberries, warning, in the Index).
THE BEST CURRANTS TO GROW
Currants come in black, red, and white (ranging from yellow to white)
colors. No blacks are recommended here because black currants are carried
by few, if any, American nurseries (McFadden Seed Co., in Canada, does
offer a nameless black variety). Black varieties that might be ordered
from nurseries abroad include Black Naples, Lee’s Prolific, Sweet-Fruited,
Ogden’s Black Grape, Baldwin, Boskoop, Seabrook, Laxton, and Daniels
September. Canadian blacks include Climax, Kerry Elipse, Clipper, and
Saunders. Black currants are used mostly for cooking or preserves and for
their medicinal properties.
Red Currant
RED LAKE. Probably the most popular red variety, at least the one offered
by most nurseries. It is a very hardy, vigorous type that bears the first
year after planting and yields large crops. Its clusters are long, the
berries uniformly large, and the plants are compact and less vigorous than
most. Like all reds, Red Lake is generally made into preserves.
WELDER. A spreading, productive plant that bears long clusters of large
berries that are pleasantly subacid; bears even more than Red Lake on less
fertile soils and the fruit hangs a long time after ripening without going
bad.
IMPROVED PERFECTION. A productive improvement of an old variety that has
larger berries than either of the above.
Other old favorites reds are London Market, Fay, Diploma, Cherry, Red
Cross, Fay’s Prolific, Victoria, and Cascade. Old European reds include
Rivers Lake, Houghton Seedling, Knights Large red, Prince Albert, La
Fertile, Laxton’s Perfection, La Hative, Mammoth, Baby Castle, Warner’s
Grape, Red Champagne, and Red Dutch.
White Currants
WHITE GRAPE. Traditionally considered the best American white currant.
Like most white currants it is mostly used for desserts, being less acid
than reds or blacks.
WHITE IMPERIAL. A recent challenger of White Grape recommended by the New
York State Testing Cooperative.
HOLLAND WHITE. The long-time favorite European white currant (sometimes
called White Dutch).
GATHERING CURRANTS.
Currants have been well-known throughout America, as familiar names in
American history like the buffalo currant, the skunk currant, and the
squaw currant clearly show. There are well over 140 species of currant,
but the following are the three species most commonly found growing wild
in America. All bloom early in the spring and fruit in midsummer.
RIBES AUREUM. The showy garden currant, which has yellow flowers and
purplish-brown fruit, growing 4 to 6 feet. Western North America.
RIBES ODORATUM. The buffalo currant, a 4-to-6-foot-high ornamental with
showy, yellow flowers in drooping clusters and black fruit. Central United
States.
RIBES SANGUINEUM. The flowering currant, ornamental bush 8 to 10 feet
high, which has red flowers and bluish black fruit. Northwestern North
America.
WHEN, WHERE, AND HOW TO PLANT.
Currants do best in a moist, cool climate, but they will yield a crop of
some sort almost anywhere in America except the very hottest and driest
regions. The fruit can be grown successfully in any good garden soil that
grows flowers and vegetables, but the ideal soil for currant growing is a
cool, moist, well-drained clay or loam, 2 feet or more in depth and on the
heavy side to help it retain moisture. Currants that are planted in light
soil and aren’t kept watered constantly will produce fruit that shrivels
or ripens prematurely and is inferior in flavor. The bushes should never
be planted in a southern exposure. Though they are not particular about
it, a pH of from 5.5 ot 7.0 is best for them.
Plant currants in the late fall or early spring before growth starts,
enriching the soil with manure or compost prior to planting. Use one or
two year olds to obtain berries within two years and set them about 5 feet
apart each way (give black currants 6 feet each way), cutting back the
plants to about 8 inches form the ground after planting. Bearing-age
transplants will yield berries sooner, but are more expensive and less
likely to survive.
One or two currant plants for each member of the family should suffice for
all but great jelly makers. Each bush will yield 4 to 6 quarts annually
and live for up to 30 years or more.
SPACE SAVERS
Currant bushes only grow 2 to 4 feet tall and spread out about the same
distance. Everything written about gooseberry space savers applies to
currants as well (see Index). Currants are just as shade resistant as
gooseberries, too, and can be planted in shady areas on your property
where no other fruit will grow. A good spot to grow them is between rows
or fruit trees or rows of grapes. They can also be planted on the north
side of buildings or fences.
To train currants to cover a wall, place young plants three feet apart.
Select the three strongest shoots on each plant and train one shoot
upright in the center and the other two equal distance on either side at
one foot apart. Cut them back if they are at all weak, allowing them to
reach the desired height, and occasionally shorten all the laterals.
CARE OF CURRANTS
Fertilizing, Watering, and Weeding
Knowing that currants are relatively heavy feeders, some gardeners tend to
overfertilize them, and as a result they produce a lot of green growth but
few, if any , berries. Currants need not be fertilized the first year if
planted properly. Every year thereafter they should be fed in the fall or
early spring with a forkful or two of well composted manure worked very
shallowly into the soil around the base of each plant so as not to disturb
the roots. If a composted manure mulch is kept around the base of each
plant and renewed from year to year, no further fertilization is needed.
Currants seem to thrive on organic fertilizers like manure mulch is kept
around the base of each plant and renewed from year to year, no further
fertilization is needed. Currants seem to thrive on organic fertilizers
worth trying are composted leaves and cover crops of barley and oats
turned under in the fall. If non-organic fertilizers are used, try either
a large handful of a well balanced, commercial fertilizer scattered
beneath each plant in the spring or fall; or 4 ounces of ammonium nitrate
per plant; or 9 ounces of nitrate of soda per plant. On light soils, which
currants don’t like, 3 to 4 ounces of sulfate of potash might benefit each
plant if applied every two years or so.
Make sure that the soil does not dry out around currant bushes; that is,
water when necessary. Selecting the proper moist soil at planting time and
keeping the bushes under a 2-inch mulch of manure, hay, straw, corncobs,
or leaves should eliminate any watering problems and hold down weeds as
well. If you don’t mulch, be sure to cultivate the bushes frequently
enough to eliminate weeds, but don’t cultivate deeply and harm the
currant’s shallow root system.
PRUNING
Like gooseberries, currants develop from fruit buds at the base of
one-year-old wood and from spurs on older canes. Currants, however, yield
a cluster of berries (not one or two) from each bud. On planting, currant
bushes are best cut back about 8 inches from the ground. From then on,
remove any canes that droop to the ground when laden with fruit (these
help spread mosaic disease), any can that doesn’t grow at least 6 inches a
year, diseased or broken canes, weak one-year shoots, and all canes over
four years old (which are usually weak and unproductive). Autumn is the
most practical time to prune currants, but the job can be done whenever
the bushes are dormant-in winter and early spring as well as in late fall.
Be sure that the bushes don’t grow too dense. Ideally, a well-pruned bush
would have about five one-year-old shoots, four two-year-old canes, and
three three-year old canes.
Insect Pests and Diseases
Currants share the same troubles as gooseberries, and these pests and
diseases should be dealt with in the same way (see Index). Compared to
many fruits, however, both currants and gooseberries are relatively
trouble free.
Propagating Currants
All types of currants can be propagated in the same ways as gooseberries
(see Index). Like gooseberries, they do not come true from seed and are
only grown in that manner in order to obtain new varieties. When planting
them from seed, use the identical method for gooseberries from seed.
Currants are more difficult to layer than gooseberries, although they can
be increases by layering if the up right shoots can be bent down and
pegged to the ground. The bushes are usually propagated by hardwood
cuttings. Early in the spring, before growth starts, take 8 to 12 inch
long cuttings from one year old canes on a productive bush (or make the
cuttings in late autumn and bury them over the winter in moist sand or
sawdust in a cool place). Insert each cutting about three-quarters of its
length into the ground. The cuttings can be grown 6 inches apart in a
nursery bed and transplanted to their permanent place in the garden after
1 to 2 years, or they can be planted in their permanent spot to begin
with. Since 50 percent of currant cuttings ordinarily survive if made
properly at the right time, watered sufficiently, and covered with a glass
jar the entire first year, two or three cuttings placed in a permanent
site should suffice to obtain one that roots and becomes a currant bush.
HARVESTING
Fortunately, currant bushes are thornless and present none of the problems
gooseberries do to the picker. One-year-old currant bushes should bear
fruit tow years after planting and be at the height of their productive
powers by the time they reach five years old. They yield up to 6 quarts a
bush and go on bearing for as long as thirty years. Currants for eating
out of hand or dessert should be dead ripe and picked just before eating,
but fruits that are to be used for jam and jelly making are best picked
firm and not fully ripe. Make sure that ll berries are dry, and do not
pick them one by one. Twist the clusters off the branch first and then
strip the berries from the clusters.
CURRANT FAVORITES
Currants have a high pectin content and are excellent for
making jams, acrually supplying all the pectin that is needed to make
raspberry currant jelly. But they are used for other tempting dishes as
well, some of the best ones following.
GENERAL ROBERT E. LEE'S CURRANT WINE
"Put three pounds of brown sugar to every squeezed gallon of currants. Add
a gallon of water, or two, if juice is scarce. It is better to put it in
an old wine cask and let it stand a year before you draw it off." (Copied
from a recipe in Mrs. Lee's handwriting).
CURRANT PIE
Mix 1 1/2 cups sugar and 2 tablespoons flour and sprinkle over 1 quart of
half ripe currants. Linea pie plate with pastry. Fill with the currants
and adjust teh edges of the top crust, carefully, as currant pie is very
juicy. Bake at 450 degrees 10 minutes; then reduce heat to moderate (350
degrees) and bake 30 minutes more or until crust is done.
CURRANT RASPERRY PRESERVES
Three pound each of raspberries, currants, and sugar. Wash the berries.
Boil the currants for 1/2 hour. Add the juice and sugar in a saucepan for
1/4 hour. Add the raspberries, letting the mixture boil up and remain
boiling for ten seconds. Remove mixture from heat and pour into jars.
CURRANT SHRUB
For every pint of currant juice, add 1 pound sugar. Boil the juice and
sugar together. Stir constantly while it cools, and when cold, bottle it.
A refreshing warm weather drink when mixed with a glass
of ice water.
CURRANT CATSUP
Boil together for 1 1/2 hours and then bottle all the following
ingredients: 5 pounds currants, 3 pounds sugar, 1/2 pint vinegar, 1
teaspoon cloves, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon
allspice, 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, dash red pepper.
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