Description of wild currants (repis), where it grows, cultivation and care

Despite the huge selection of cultivated varieties of black currant, in any area you can find repis - wild or forest currant. Somewhere in a corner there is a single bush growing, but it is growing. A tall shrub with sour berries, which are very useful in contrast to varietal species. They love him because of his unpretentiousness and beauty. In autumn it looks very elegant and decorates the front garden with red and yellow leaves. It’s worth finding out in advance what a wild currant bush looks like and what it is, as well as how to plant it and care for it in order to get a big harvest.

Wild currant: beneficial properties and applications

Currant leaves and berries are popularly valued for their wealth of vitamins and minerals. They are used as an antipyretic and diaphoretic for colds of various natures. In addition, they are used for diseases:

• gastrointestinal tract;
• vascular system;
• vitamin deficiency;
• immune system disorders;
• ARVI;
• oncology;
• skin.

For elderly people, wild currant improves mental activity, cleanses the body of toxins, lowers cholesterol levels in the blood, strengthens blood vessels and fights atherosclerosis.

This is due to the chemical composition of the plant. It contains large amounts of vitamins A, PP, groups B, C and E, organic acids, pectin, sugars, tannins and essential oils. Nutrients can be preserved during long-term freezing, so they can be used all year round.

The fruits of wild currants can be used frozen, brewed drinks, prepared jams, preserves and pastilles, and prepared sauces for dishes. And if you throw a handful of dried berries into your tea, you will get a healing drink that will warm you up on a winter evening.

Description and characteristics of culture

Wild currants are widespread in the Urals and Siberia. It is found in the form of thickets on the banks of lakes and rivers, as well as in forests, ravines and swamps. It's easy to recognize the record. Its dark green three-lobed leaves resemble gooseberry foliage in appearance.In autumn, plantings of wild currants look very bright, they turn bright yellow or red.

The shrub is quite tall, reaching a height of up to 3 meters. A feature of wild currants is their adaptability to harsh climatic growing conditions: extreme heat in summer and low temperatures in winter. Currant bushes practically do not freeze; most likely, they die from age, as they do not receive proper care in the wild. At home, repis plantings are used as green spaces that protect the area from the winds.

At the end of spring the plant blooms. The flowers have a yellow color and a rich aroma, reaching up to 1 cm in diameter. Characteristic of the plant are berries. The size of the berries grows up to 1 cm in length. They have an oblong elliptical shape, with a dried flower at the end that resembles a tail. They are numerous on the bush and have different colors: from yellow to black. In common parlance, wild currants are called “pearl” or “silver”.

The taste of currant berries is sweet and sour, but the sourness is more pronounced. Fruit ripening occurs in July and lasts for 1.5 months.

Species of Siberian Grouse

Today two types of plants are known:

• wild black currant;
• Red Ribes.

Wild black currant

Black currants can be found in dense forests of the European part of Russia, in Kazakhstan and the Urals. It can be used for direct fresh consumption and for winter preparations.

Red forest currant

It is quite difficult to eat this berry, since it is very sour and lacks sweetness. But there is no tastier jam than red grouse. It is added to any culinary masterpieces and is great for drying.Afterwards, you can cook vitamin compotes, prepare fillings for pies and add them to sauces for meat dishes.

How to grow wild currants correctly

Repis, also known as the Ural beauty, grows on various lands. There are no soil requirements. The key to successful fruiting lies in high-quality planting material and the choice of place for its growth.

Choosing a strong and healthy seedling

This is a very important stage when growing a good currant bush. It must meet the following requirements:

1. Be strong and healthy.
2. The root system should not be dry or dried out.
3. Make sure that the mother plant does not suffer from diseases and pests.
4. There should be no dried or limp leaves on the daughter offspring, which indicates the presence of pests.
5. The ground part of the seedling should have several already lignified branches.
6. Each shoot has at least three green living buds.

If you have to dig up a currant seedling on the shore or in the forest, it is better to take the outermost offspring, since it is less oppressed by adult plants and does not suffer from shading. A healthy seedling will have berries within two years, but very few. Abundant fruiting begins in the fifth year.

Preparing the soil and planting hole

Kamenushka does not require specific soil compositions. The main condition here is timely application of fertilizers.

Planting wild currants should begin in late August or early September so that the root system has time to take root before the onset of frost. Planting can be done in the spring, so the plant will have time to fully take root and even gain strength and begin to grow.

In the selected area, dig a hole similar in size to the bush. The optimal parameters are 60 x 60. Dig deep enough to fill a bucket of humus.Sprinkle a little soil on top of the humus in the form of a tubercle. Carefully place the roots of the seedling on the tubercle and sprinkle with the remaining soil. Stomp your feet.

Important! The root neck should not be buried in the ground.

Water the young plant and add mulch on top. This can be chopped straw or sawdust to prevent the soil from cracking.

Caring for wild bushes

The care technology is similar to the agricultural technology of cultivated varieties of currants, but there are still some nuances.

Watering

After planting, the wild beauty should be watered once every week. 10 liters of water are poured onto one young seedling. You cannot pour under the root, so as not to wash out the root neck and open the upper roots.

With the first leaves blooming, watering is reduced and moistened once every two or even three weeks. The water should be slightly settled in a container. Too cold water can have a negative impact on the young seedling. Adult bushes are undemanding to it.

Fertilizer

Both black and red spruce grouse are fed twice per season: in autumn and spring. In the spring, before flowering, mineral fertilizers and a little bird droppings should be applied, which in this case acts as nitrogen fertilizer.

In the fall, organic matter is added, but not more than 4 kg of humus per bush, or wood ash at the rate of 1 cup per 10-liter bucket. Water with fertilizer along the edges of the hole so as not to burn the root system. Humus is poured in a thin layer, and then mixed with the top layer of soil using a small hoe.

Important! After fertilizing, the plant should be watered generously.

Pruning and crown formation

Since the plant is wild by nature and is not pruned in nature, it does not require crown formation at home.Broken and dried shoots are cut out from fruit-bearing bushes. Five-year-old branches should also be removed; they will be replaced by young ones. Pruning should be done with sharp garden shears or pruning shears in early spring, before the leaves bloom.

If the plant is grown as a green hedge, then it is pruned according to the shape with which this very hedge is made.

Treatment against insects and diseases

Diseases and attacking insect pests are the same as for garden currants. Among the most common:

• powdery mildew;
• rust;
• kidney mite;
• aphids and ants;
• currant borer;
• gooseberry moth.

The main control measures are cutting out diseased shoots and digging up the soil under the bush. But processing remains the main thing. The schedule should be followed:

1. When the buds open, use a solution of Decis, Confidor, Calypso, and 25% anometrine emulsion.
2. Before it blooms or after, treatment with colloidal sulfur is used, which will save the plant from powdery mildew and currant mites.
3. A month after flowering, treat the borer or glassweed with a solution of Karbofos or chlorophos.

Among the folk remedies, solutions of onion peels, garlic, dandelion infusion, wormwood infusion, soap solution and infusion of potato tops are effective. In the event of a bud mite attack, the plant must be completely dug up and burned, otherwise there is a risk of destroying the entire currant plantation.

Do I need to cover it for the winter?

The answer is clear - no. In the wild, there is self-replacement, that is, if one freezes, another will grow in its place. But, as a rule, grouse can easily withstand the severe frosts of Siberia, the Urals and the Far East.

Gardening tips for growing wild currants

It is better to plant two bushes on your site so that they can later pollinate from each other. If pests appear on one currant bush, all existing plantings should be treated.

In winter, rodents attack the berry fields. To protect the forest currant bush from mice and hares in winter, the lower branches can be wrapped in polyethylene or old nylon tights.

After planting a young currant seedling, you can make a quadrangular fastening around it from thick branches or boards so that the bush does not fall apart in the future.

Wild currants, or repiss, are very easy to care for, so they are popular among gardeners. The yield from one adult bush per season reaches 8 kg. This fact suggests that it is enough to have a couple of bushes on your site. Yes, and you can plant them in a corner.