White & red currants?

[smallblueplanet]

Thinking about growing some soft fruit this year - never grown any fruit before. The OH fancies white and red currants.

Can anyone recommend good varieties - how sweet are they? I've never tasted either

Plus any tips on growing conditions please?

[Alison]

I grow red currants but unfortunatly have absolutely no idea what variety as I've lost the info. Re growing, treat them pretty similar to a gooseberry and they don't take much work. Can get pretty big and unmanageable if you don't prune them properly but you should get a good crop. We only have one and get plenty for our needs. I like to sprinkle a few on my cereal / yoghurt when they're fresh but OH finds them too sour so prefers them cooked with a bit of sugar. Freeze well too if you get too many. Never grown white currants but would guess they're pretty similar.

[smallblueplanet]

Thanks Alison - never grown gooseberries (hate them!) though. Hmm I understood redcurrants were meant to be sweeter than blackcurrants?

[Alison]

They are sweeter than blackcurrants but not as sweet as say raspberries. Have a look on the web eg Ken Muir site for a bit more info.

[rustylady]

Apparently white currants are the sweetest, red next, and then blackcurrants. Ken Muir is an excellent sitel, and plants are good quality but quite pricey.

[nick the grief]

I grow ( or should I say grew) Red white & black currants.
Redcurrant - Rovada. White currant - Blanka & Blackcurrant - Ben Sarek

The white never seemed to do as well as the other two and I think I got something like 20lb of fruit of the red & black.

[smallblueplanet]

I was looking at the Blanka & Rovada on DT Brown Nick, what sort of size do they grow to?

[Snadger]

I grow white versailles and always get a good crop! The birds seem to love red currants and white currants but don't bother with the blackcurrants!

White currants taste to me like grapes with a lot of pips! Deffinately worth growing though!

I think the redcurrants variety are 'something' van tets and the blackcurrants are Ben Conan!

[nick the grief]

I was looking at the Blanka & Rovada on DT Brown Nick, what sort of size do they grow to?

Mot sure Manda, ,mine are only 2 or 3 years old and they are about 3ft tall at the moment. I gave them loads of space mind you (about 6ft between bushes). I didn't get mine from DT Browns I think it was Marshalls but there are a lot of places that sell them.

Snadger - Jonkeers van tets I think it is.