How to Grow Blackcurrants, Redcurrants and Whitecurrants

Currants are one of the most forgiving fruits you can plant in a British garden. A single bush gives kilos of berries for years, asks for almost nothing, and copes with the cool, damp summers that defeat fussier crops. If you have never grown fruit before, this is a brilliant place to start — and this guide covers all three: blackcurrants, redcurrants and whitecurrants.

Why grow currants

Currants earn their space many times over. They are tough, productive, long-lived plants that suit beginners and busy gardeners alike — and unlike a lot of fruit, they genuinely tolerate a less-than-perfect spot.

• They are hardy. Currants are fully frost-hardy and shrug off cold UK winters. Late frosts can catch the flowers, but the plants themselves are unbothered.
• They crop heavily. A mature blackcurrant bush can give 4–5kg of fruit a year; a good redcurrant just as much. That is a freezer full of berries from one small shrub.
• They tolerate shade. Few fruits crop well out of full sun, but currants will. They are happy in light or dappled shade, which makes them ideal for the cooler, north-facing corners where little else fruits.
• They are long-lived. A currant is a perennial shrub that will fruit for 15 years or more from a single planting. Buy once, pick for over a decade.
• They need very little. Beyond an annual prune and a spring mulch, currants more or less look after themselves. No staking, no fiddly training, no spraying.

That combination of toughness and generosity is exactly why currants sit alongside strawberries, raspberries and gooseberries as the backbone of a beginner's fruit garden. If you are planning a plot from scratch, our grow fruit hub walks through the easiest soft fruits to start with.

Blackcurrants are the powerhouse of the three — intensely flavoured, perfect for cordials, jam and crumbles. Redcurrants and whitecurrants are jewel-like and tart, brilliant in jellies and summer puddings. They look quite different in growth and habit, which matters most at pruning time, so it pays to know which you are dealing with.

Blackcurrants vs red and whitecurrants

Although they share a name and a season, the two groups grow quite differently, and getting this distinction clear now will save you confusion later — especially at pruning time.

Blackcurrants (Ribes nigrum) crop best on young wood — branches that grew the previous summer. The whole point of growing a blackcurrant is to keep encouraging a steady supply of vigorous new shoots from low down, while removing the older, tired wood that produces less and less each year. They are grown as an open, multi-stemmed "stool" bush with shoots coming straight from the base.

Redcurrants and whitecurrants (Ribes rubrum — whitecurrants are simply a white-fruited form of the same species) crop on a permanent framework. The fruit forms on short, stubby side-shoots called spurs, which sit on older, established branches. Rather than constantly renewing the wood, you build a lasting structure — usually an open goblet shape on a short clear stem, or "leg" — and prune to keep it tidy and fruitful. In practice this is much closer to the way you prune a gooseberry than a blackcurrant.

So the headline is simple:

• Blackcurrants — cut out the old, keep the new, no leg.
• Red and whitecurrants — build a framework on a leg, prune for spurs.

This single difference drives how you plant them and how you prune them, both of which we cover below. Pruning is where most beginners come unstuck, so we have a dedicated walk-through with diagrams in our guide to pruning currants — read it alongside this one before you pick up the secateurs.

Choosing a variety

Modern UK varieties are more compact, more disease-resistant and easier to pick than the old types. Buy from a reputable supplier as certified, virus-free stock — currants are prone to viruses spread by aphids, and clean plants are worth every penny. Here are reliable choices for each.

Blackcurrants

• 'Ben Sarek' — the classic choice for small gardens. A compact, sturdy bush rarely over 1.2m, so it needs no support and squeezes into tight spots or large pots. Heavy crops of big berries and good mildew resistance. The first blackcurrant most beginners should plant.
• 'Ben Connan' — slightly larger but still neat, and exceptionally productive for its size. Early-ripening, very large berries, and strong resistance to mildew and leaf spot. An excellent, fuss-free modern variety.
• 'Ben Lomond' — a heavier, taller bush for those with more room. Late-flowering, which helps it dodge frosts, and a dependable cropper. Worth it if you want quantity for the freezer.

The "Ben" series was bred in Scotland specifically for the British climate, so all three are well suited to cool, wet summers and late springs.

Redcurrants

• 'Rovada' — widely regarded as the best garden redcurrant available. Very long trusses ("strigs") of large, glossy berries that ripen late, so the picking season is stretched out. Heavy-cropping, easy to grow and disease-resistant. If you buy one redcurrant, make it this.
• 'Jonkheer van Tets' — an early, reliable old favourite with good flavour and big crops. A fine choice if you want fruit a few weeks before 'Rovada'.

Whitecurrants

• 'White Versailles' — the standard whitecurrant and rightly so. Large, sweet, translucent pale-gold berries that are milder and less sharp than red, lovely eaten straight off the bush. Reliable and productive.

A single bush of each gives a household plenty. Currants are largely self-fertile, so you do not need two for pollination — though more bushes simply means more fruit.

Where to grow

Currants are not fussy, but a little thought at planting pays back for 15 years.

Light. Full sun gives the heaviest, sweetest crops, but — unusually for fruit — currants tolerate part shade well. A spot that gets a few hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light, will still fruit. Redcurrants and whitecurrants are particularly shade-tolerant and the classic choice for training flat against a cool, even north-facing, wall or fence.

Soil. They like a rich, moisture-retentive but well-drained soil — moist, never waterlogged. Blackcurrants are especially hungry and thrive on heavier, fertile ground. If your soil is thin, sandy or full of clay, dig in plenty of well-rotted manure or garden compost before planting. Improving your soil covers how, and the no-dig approach suits currants beautifully — they have shallow roots that resent disturbance.

Shelter. Pick a spot away from cold winds and frost pockets. Currants flower early, in March and April, and a hard late frost on open blossom can ruin that year's crop. A wall, fence or hedge nearby gives useful protection.

Spacing. Allow about 1.5m between bushes (a little less for compact varieties like 'Ben Sarek'). Cordon-trained red and whitecurrants can go as close as 40cm apart against a wall.

Once planted, keep a permanent organic mulch over the roots. A 5–8cm layer of compost, well-rotted manure or leaf mould every spring locks in moisture, feeds the soil and smothers weeds — exactly what these shallow-rooted shrubs want.

Planting

The single most important difference at planting time follows directly from how each type fruits — so plant blackcurrants and red/whitecurrants differently.

The best time to plant is between November and March, while the bushes are dormant and bare-root stock is cheap and widely available. Pot-grown plants can go in at any time of year, as long as you keep them watered through dry spells. Avoid planting into frozen or waterlogged ground — wait for a milder, workable day. You can check timings for your area with the planting calendar.

To plant:

1. Soak the roots of a bare-root bush in a bucket of water for an hour or two before planting; water a pot-grown plant well.
2. Dig a generous hole, wider than the roots, and fork some compost or well-rotted manure into the base and the backfill.
3. Set the bush at the right depth — and here is the key difference.

Blackcurrants — plant deep. Set a blackcurrant about 5–6cm deeper than it grew in the pot or nursery (you will see a soil mark on the stem). Burying the base encourages a thicket of strong new shoots to grow up from below ground, which is exactly what you want — blackcurrants fruit on young wood, so the more new shoots, the better. After planting, cut all the stems down hard to about 5cm above the ground (two buds each). It feels brutal, but it forces vigorous new growth from the base in year one and sets the bush up for years of heavy cropping. You sacrifice the first season's fruit for a far stronger plant.

Red and whitecurrants — plant on a leg. These are grown on a short, clear stem, so plant them at the same depth they grew before — never bury the stem. The aim is a single clear "leg" of about 10–15cm before the branches begin, which keeps the centre of the bush open and airy. Do not cut a red or whitecurrant to the ground; instead, after planting, shorten the main branches by about half to outward-facing buds to start building the goblet-shaped framework.

Firm the soil gently, water in well, and mulch around (but not touching) the stems.

Feeding and mulching

Currants — blackcurrants especially — are hungry plants, and a little feeding makes a real difference to the size of your crop.

In late winter or early spring, scatter a general-purpose organic fertiliser around each bush — a high-potash feed encourages flowering and fruiting. Blackcurrants also appreciate extra nitrogen, as they put on so much new wood each year; a sprinkle of dried poultry manure pellets suits them well. If you keep chickens, well-rotted coop bedding is ideal.

Then mulch generously every spring. A thick layer of well-rotted manure, garden compost or leaf mould over the root zone feeds the soil, keeps moisture in and suppresses weeds. Because currants root shallowly, avoid hoeing deeply around them — the mulch does the weed-smothering for you. You can make your own feeds cheaply too: see homemade plant feeds, and how to make compost for a free, endless supply of mulch.

Water in dry spells, particularly while the fruit is swelling in June and July, and especially for plants in containers or against a wall, where the soil dries fastest. Bushes that go short of water at fruiting time drop berries and crop poorly the following year.

Pruning each type

Pruning is where the blackcurrant / redcurrant difference really shows, and it is the one job that puzzles most beginners. The short version: prune the two groups in opposite ways. For a full, step-by-step walk-through with timings and diagrams, see our dedicated guide to pruning currants — what follows is the essential summary.

Pruning blackcurrants

Blackcurrants fruit best on wood that grew the previous year, so your goal is to keep removing old wood and encouraging fresh shoots from the base.

• Prune in winter when dormant, or straight after fruiting in late summer.
• On an established bush, cut out about a third of the oldest stems each year, taking them right down to ground level. Old wood is darker; young wood is paler.
• Remove any weak, low-lying or crossing shoots, and anything diseased.
• That is essentially it — keep a balance of young and middle-aged wood, and let the base keep throwing up new shoots.

Pruning red and whitecurrants

These fruit on permanent spurs along a framework of older branches, so you build and maintain a structure rather than renewing it — just like a gooseberry.

• Winter prune: shorten the previous summer's growth on each main branch by about half, cutting to an outward-facing bud, and shorten side-shoots back to one or two buds to build fruiting spurs. Keep the centre open by removing inward-growing, crossing or congested shoots. Aim for an open goblet of 8–10 main branches on a clear leg.
• Summer prune (around June): shorten the new side-shoots back to about five leaves. This lets light and air into the bush, ripens the fruit and reduces hiding places for pests. Leave the main branch tips until winter.

Problems

Currants are healthy, robust plants, and a beginner can grow good crops without ever reaching for a spray. A few issues are worth knowing about, but most are easily managed.

Big bud mite is the main one to watch, especially on blackcurrants. Tiny mites infest the buds over winter, making them swell up round and fat instead of slim and pointed — the classic "big bud". The mites also spread reversion virus, which slowly kills a bush's productivity. Pick off and burn swollen buds in winter, choose resistant varieties, and replace badly affected bushes with certified clean stock. Our guide to big bud mite explains how to spot and tackle it.

Birds love ripe currants — blackbirds and pigeons especially, and they often strip red and whitecurrants just as they colour up. The only reliable answer is to net the bushes as the fruit ripens, or grow them in a fruit cage. Make sure netting is taut so birds cannot get tangled. The same protection that saves your strawberries works here.

Gooseberry sawfly also attacks currants (despite the name). The little green caterpillars can strip a bush of leaves with alarming speed, usually starting in the centre. Check the middle of the bush from late spring, pick off the caterpillars by hand, and the bush will quickly recover and leaf up again — keeping an open centre by pruning makes them easier to spot. Encouraging birds and beneficial insects helps keep numbers down: see our guides to bird feeders and attracting beneficial insects.

American gooseberry mildew and leaf spot can appear in damp seasons, showing as white powdery patches or brown-spotted, yellowing leaves. Good airflow from open pruning, not crowding the bushes, and choosing resistant modern varieties (the "Ben" blackcurrants and 'Rovada' redcurrant are all good) largely prevent both.

Harvesting

This is the easy, rewarding part — and the picking method differs slightly between the two groups.

Blackcurrants ripen from July into August. On older varieties the berries near the top of each strig ripen first, so you can pick a strig at a time over a week or two; on modern varieties the whole strig tends to ripen together, so you simply pick the lot. Fruit is ready when it is fully black, glossy and parts easily from the bush. Pick the whole strig and strip the berries off later — a table fork drawn down the strig makes quick work of it.

Redcurrants and whitecurrants ripen in July, and you pick them differently: snip or pull off the entire strig rather than individual berries, which keeps the fruit intact and undamaged. They hold well on the bush once ripe, so you have a week or two to gather them. Whitecurrants are ready when fully translucent and pale gold.

A mature bush of any type will give several kilos in a good year — usually more than you can eat fresh. The surplus freezes superbly: spread the berries on a tray to open-freeze, then bag them up, and they keep for a year for jam, cordial and crumbles. Currants are among the best fruits for the freezer, thawing with little loss of texture. For more on putting a glut by, see storing your harvest.

How currants compare to gooseberries

If you are choosing soft fruit for a small garden, it is worth seeing currants alongside their close cousin, the gooseberry — the three are all Ribes and grow in very similar ways.

• Habit and pruning: gooseberries are grown and pruned almost exactly like red and whitecurrants — an open goblet on a leg, with a winter and a summer prune. So if you can grow one, you can grow the other. Blackcurrants are the odd one out, grown as a stool and renewed from the base.
• Thorns: gooseberries have thorns; currants do not, which makes currants noticeably more pleasant to prune and pick.
• Flavour and use: blackcurrants are rich and intense; red and whitecurrants are bright and sharp; gooseberries sit somewhere between, good cooked or (for dessert types) eaten ripe. Growing a couple of each gives a long soft-fruit season from June through August.
• Conditions: all four shrug off cool UK summers and tolerate some shade, making them the most beginner-friendly fruits you can plant.

A garden with one blackcurrant, one redcurrant and one gooseberry covers a remarkable range of summer fruit from three undemanding, long-lived bushes — a brilliant starter trio.

What you'll need

Currants need very little kit. A good pair of secateurs for pruning, some bird netting for the few weeks when the fruit is ripening, and a barrow-load of mulch each spring covers almost everything. Buy your bushes as certified virus-free stock from a reputable supplier for the best long-term results.

Plant a currant or two this winter and you will be rewarded with effortless crops of summer berries for many years to come. Once they are in, pair them with the rest of your soft fruit — strawberries, raspberries and a gooseberry — and you have the makings of a productive fruit garden that practically grows itself.