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Many s prefer to grow currants with berries of different colors on their plots. Currant Versailles white – one of the favorite varieties. The authors are French breeders who created the variety back in the nineteenth century. The variety came to Our Country in the last century. In 1959, currants were included in the State Register and recommended for cultivation in a number of regions:
- Northwestern and Central;
- Volga-Vyatka and Central Black Earth;
- Middle Volga and Ural.
Description and characteristics
It is difficult to understand the features of the Versailles currant variety without a description, photo and reviews of gardeners. It is by the external signs of bushes, leaves and berries that plants can be recognized.
Bushes
White currant from French breeders belongs to the varieties of early ripening, stands out with a well-developed root system. Horizontal (lateral) roots are located at a depth of 40 cm and are able to grow beyond the crown. The central root goes to a depth of more than a meter.
The bushes are erect, the height of the adult Versailles white currant is from 120 to 150 cm. There are not too many shoots, but they have a drawback – they do not have great growth power.
Dark green leaves with a bluish tinge are large, with five lobes. The lower part of the leaf blade has a fine pubescence. Leaf margins on whitecurrant with short, blunt teeth.
Flowers and berries
Currant white Versailles is a high-yielding variety. During flowering, yellowish-white bells bloom on long racemes (see photo). Flowers, and then berries, sit on long straight petioles.
The fruits are large up to 10 mm and weighing up to 1,3 grams. This is clearly visible in the photo. With good agricultural technology, you can collect up to 4 kg of rounded berries from a bush. Fruits with a dense, transparent skin of pale cream color and sweet and sour pulp. Ripening berries on the white Versailles currant, according to the description and reviews of gardeners, are firmly attached to the petioles and do not crumble.
The white currant of the Versailles variety, due to its dense skin, tolerates transportation well. Plants are frost-resistant, have good immunity. Caring for currants of this variety is no more difficult than for other berry bushes.
Methods of reproduction
Versailles white currant is propagated in the same way as other varieties:
- layering;
- cuttings;
- division of the bush.
Let’s consider all the methods in detail.
Layering
This method for the Versailles white currant is the most common and reliable:
- Early in the spring, before the movement of the juice began, they dig a groove about 10 centimeters deep around the bush of the most prolific currant. Fertile land is brought into it.
- Then several annual or biennial shoots are selected and bent down, leaving the top at the top. Secure the stem with metal staples. The earth is poured on top and watered well.
- After a while, the white currant will take root, and shoots will appear.
- When it grows to 10 cm, hilling is carried out to the middle of the shoot.
- After 14-18 days, future seedlings again spud up to half the height. Drying of the soil should not be allowed.
By autumn, full-fledged seedlings of white currant of the Versailles variety grow on layering, which can be transplanted to a permanent place or to a separate bed for growing. Plants grown from layering begin to bear fruit in 2-3 years.
Cutting
You can propagate the variety of white currant Versailles by cuttings. They are cut in February from annual or biennial shoots located in the middle of the bush. The branches should be no thinner than a pencil. A cutting with 5 or 7 buds is cut to a length of 18-20 centimeters. Slices are made obliquely and sprinkled with wood ash. The lower part of the currant petiole is placed in water to obtain a root system.
With the onset of heat, Versailles white currant cuttings are placed on a bed in loose soil at an angle of 45 degrees. Plastic jars are placed on top to create a greenhouse. Seedlings are planted in a permanent place from the nursery after two years.
Planting of currant
According to gardeners, the best time to plant white currants is early September. Plants will have enough time to root and prepare for winter. You can, of course, do work in the spring, until the buds begin to swell.
Site Selection
For planting, choose a well-lit area where cold winds do not host. The best place for the Versailles variety is along the fence or against the wall of buildings. If the groundwater on the site comes close to the surface, you will have to lay good drainage or plant seedlings on high beds.
The pit for currants should be at least 40 cm deep and about half a meter in diameter. When digging, the soil is stored on one side, it will be needed in the future. Manure, 500 ml of wood ash are added to the ground. Everything is mixed.
Preparing and planting seedlings
Before planting, carefully inspect the seedlings for damage. If the roots are long, then they are shortened to 15-20 cm. It is advisable to soak seedlings with an open root system for a day in a growth stimulator (according to instructions) or in a solution of honey. One tablespoon of sweetness is added to a bucket of water.
Landing steps:
- A hole filled with soil is filled with water and allowed to soak.
- Then put the seedling at an angle of 45 degrees. The immersion depth of the currant should be seven centimeters lower than it grew before planting.
- After sprinkling with earth, the white currant bush is again watered abundantly. This is necessary so that air comes out from under the roots. In this case, the adhesion to the soil will be higher, the seedling will start growing faster.
- When the water is slightly absorbed, sprinkle fertile soil and mulch on top again. Moisture will last longer.
- Immediately after planting, a white currant seedling is pruned. Shoots no more than 15 cm with 5-6 buds are left above the surface.
Inexperienced gardeners often omit such an operation as pruning, as a result of which they greatly weaken the seedling. After all, the plant has to make a double effort: to build up the root system and “contain” the aerial part. As a result, the weak development of existing branches and a small increase in replacement shoots.
White currant bushes planted in autumn must be spudded, a layer of humus or compost is poured into the near-trunk circle to save the root system from freezing.
Features of care
White Versailles currant, as indicated in the description, does not impose any special requirements when growing. Landing care comes down to traditional activities:
- timely watering and weeding;
- surface loosening of the soil and top dressing;
- pruning and preventive treatment of bushes from diseases and pests.
Watering
Variety Versailles, like other varieties of white currant, loves abundant watering. The lack of moisture reduces the rate of development, which further negatively affects the size and taste of berries, reduces the yield.
Abundant or moisture-charging watering is carried out twice: in spring, when the plants wake up, and in autumn. A large amount of water is required for plants during flowering and pouring berries. Otherwise, flowers and fruits may crumble.
To understand that the currant has enough water, you can take measurements. If the soil is moistened 40 centimeters deep, then the plant has enough moisture. As a rule, 2-3 buckets are required for one irrigation, depending on the capacity of the bush. It is best to pour water not under the root, but into grooves dug in a circle.
Immediately after watering, when the water is absorbed, it is necessary to loosen the soil and remove weeds. This should be done carefully, to a shallow depth (up to 10 cm), since the root system of the Versailles white variety is located close to the surface.
How to feed
Versailles white currant responds well to timely top dressing.
In the spring, you can water the bushes with infusion of mullein (1:10) or bird droppings (0,5:10). A ten-liter bucket is enough for 2-3 bushes, depending on the size.
For summer foliar top dressing on leaves, you can use a mixture of micronutrient fertilizers (for a bucket of water):
- Zinc sulfate – 2-3 grams;
- Manganese sulfate – 5-10 grams;
- Boric acid – 2-2,5 grams;
- Molybdic acid ammonium – 2,3 grams;
- Copper sulfate – 1-2 grams.
During fruiting, you can water the bushes of white currant with infusions of green grass, nettle. It is good to sprinkle the bushes and the surface under them with wood ash.
In autumn, up to 15 kg of compost or humus is poured under each bush of the Versailles white variety. You don’t need to mix it up. This is not only nutrition, but also a shelter for the root system from frost.
Plant protection
As noted in the description, as well as in the reviews of gardeners dealing with Versailles white currant varieties, the plants are resistant to certain diseases. But be that as it may, preventive measures still need to be taken.
For the treatment of diseases and pests, special tools are needed. You can use Bordeaux mixture, copper sulfate, Nitrafen or other drugs. The method of dilution and use is indicated on the package.
Trimming
Pruned white currant variety Versailles several times per season:
- Sanitary, anti-aging and shaping pruning is performed in the spring.
- In summer, diseased twigs and extra annual shoots are cut out.
- In autumn, dry branches are removed, and the number of shoots of different ages is adjusted. Older ones must be removed.
Thanks to pruning, the currant develops better, branches. Cutting out excess shoots ensures air circulation in the bush, protects plantings from diseases and pests.
Annually leave 4-5 shoots of the first year of life. As a result, after a few years, a powerful bush grows, giving a rich harvest.
Rules for autumn pruning of white currants:
When all agrotechnical standards are met, excellent yields of Versailles white currant are obtained annually, as in the photo below.
