Red Currants grew in our garden from the time of my childhood. My mother cooked them for jams, but I loved to simply pick them and eat them fresh.
Red Currant shrubs have been available to the home gardener for a long time. Today there are more varieties available than ever before.
Ribes rubrum produces long trusses of tart fruit, good for eating fresh or for making jelly. Most cultivars produce the standard red fruit, although there are pink- and white-fruited varieties.
These open-form, small to medium sized shrubs are easy to grow in sun or part shade. No special soil requirements, although currants will benefit from a yearly dose of organic fertilizer.
Currants are prone to cane blight, so watch for dead wood and remove it. Otherwise, prune only when necessary because the berries are produced on old wood grown the year before. About all I ever do is remove dead wood or the occasional branch sticking out in the wrong direction.
My garden is full of shrub fruits, but I would never be without my red currants.
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