[greenhead]

I have a row of black Currents that form a boundary hedge, they were there when I took on the plot.  They look as if they have been there for years and they all suffer from big bud disease although they fruit well.  Should they be grubbed out now and new bushes planted?  Have tried to dig one up but the roots go down too far - digger job or what?

I would like to plant in the same spot so what do I do with the old soil? reuse?
 Can anybody recommend a variety that are big bud resistant - Is big bud disease a symptom of age or what?

Thanks for any help.

[gillie]

It should be a good year for black currants as they are said to need a hard winter. Big buds are caused by a mite living within the buds which sometimes carry a virus which stops the bush producing.  I guess the mites build up over time. 

Since they are cropping it might be worth rescuing the old bushes by giving them a hard pruning, taking out a third of the oldest branches completely and then picking off the big buds from the remaining stems. 

If that is not feasible then they will have to be grubbed out by whatever means but I would not replant currants in the same place.

Gillie

[greenhead]

Thanks Gillie,  if I grub them out and replace the soil with soil from elsewhere on my plot would that be OK?.

[gillie]

Thanks Gillie,  if I grub them out and replace the soil with soil from elsewhere on my plot would that be OK?.

Probably.  I know of no replant sickness with currants, but it is never a good idea to replace like with like - and replacing the soil would be a lot of work.  It would be better to plant something entirely different and put your new black currants somewhere else.  How many bushes do you need?  two or three healthy bushes of a modern variety should be enough for the average family.

Gillie

[eeedowls]

Sorry to hi-jack the thread, but I have a quick question and I would be grateful if someone could advise.

I bought a blackcurrant plant (too small to be called a bush), last year (around late May/Early June I believe) and had hardly any growth off it...

I looked at it last week and there seems to be a lot of buds now on the plant.

Bearing in mind people say to prune them back hard, should I do that (the currant (sic) branches are around six - ten inches long only), or should I just leave it and see how it goes?

thanks...

[stompy]

Firstly eeedowls, i would just leave them this year, then at the end of the year prune back all the branches by a 3rd. then at the end of next season prune to the ground one third of the branches then another 3rd the season after and so on.

Greenhead, i would pull out the old bushes and replace the soil with a mix of 70/30 soil and compost and add some blood fish and bone to the mix, then IMO plant in the same place.
Just make sure all debris from the previouse bushes is removed from the area and either binned or burned.