i usually do the same but in early spring when i cut my everbearing raspberries to the ground. i planted a perfection red currant last spring. I’m anxious to see how well it grows up here. consort is very hardy and vigorous here. hopefully the golden currants i planted from 2 different nurseries do nearly as well. i don’t remove the seeds but they don’t bother me and no one has complained about them yet.
surprising they don’t grow well for you. mine grow like weeds! they go from a 12in cuttings to a 4ft by 3ft. plant in 3 yrs.(consort) only my raspberries and elderberries are as vigorous. do you mulch? like mrsg said they don’t like competition around their shallow roots. they also like a good dose of fertilizer in spring . a little 10-10-10 w/ some compost does the trick.
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They are mulched and given 10-10-10. Not always kept pristinely weeded, though, but weeded a couple times over the summer. They are getting there, but slowly.
i find cuttings grow better and quicker if started in 12in pot for the summer, then transplanted in late fall once they have gone dormant. mulch them well. they will really take off next spring.
I think Ben Sarek is supposed to be compact and not more than 3 ft tall. Maybe that’s why it hasn’t seemed to grow. Mine are about half the size as the Titania I planted at the same time, but they are healthy and produce fairly well.
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My Ben Serak’s are a little over four feet tall before pruning. Mine grew rapidly, but they love my micro climate, so I guess I am in luck. They grow the same way, however, in Bavaria, Germany and Alsace. Many climates cooler than mine.
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I think my dog has been fertilizing it a little too much. So hopefully it will recover. I did lose some canes. It is very small for how old it is.
Kopan’s jubilee - Kopan is the breeder name (actually V.Kopan and his wife K.Kopan) that created this variety in 1983
Hi Alex, since I purchased a home I am looking for this variety (Kopan’s jubilee) in the USA, but couldn’t get/order it. If you have it would you mind to sell me a couple of cuttings, I live in Nanuet NY 10954? Thanks
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I didn’t mean to have it sound like I was growing all those varieties…but currants aren’t all that difficult. Probably white pine blister rust or planting where there is no drainage to the soil would be the biggest obstacles to success with currants.
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Currants can sometimes just up and die. The plants are never that long lived. Cloning them every few years is a good practice. They should produce for a decade or more, with good renewal pruning and such. Having backups I would suggest is a good idea especially if you particularly like a certain cultivar. Blacks seem to have many subtle differences and are interesting. Reds seem to taste pretty much the same. So I settled on Rovada for it’s large berries and easy to harvest clusters. Other good reds out there too. But I’m happy with Rovada, and removed a few others and will replace with Rovada clones.
Looking for Kirovchanka black if anybody has it? I will be adding Belorusskaya and Risager this year to trial. The two Russian cultivars are highly praised by some experienced growers.
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are either WPBR resistant? had some in my clove currants last summer so like to remove them and replant with resistant varieties other than consort. no w. pines around here but don’t want to take any chances.
I’m not sure about Belorusskaya? Risager is from the Netherlands and very resistant, also very resistant to leaf spot and mildew. . I know Kirovchanka is too so it’s sister Belorusskaya probably is, but unconfirmed. Both are from Russia and obtained via collusion with Russian growers! 
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Yes…thanks for the chuckle.
where did you get yours from? honeyberry USA has Tiben that has resistance and is supposed to be a heavy producer also. may get a few.
Well I don’t have them yet, but from Honeyberry. Raintree also sells the one I want but will not ship to Michigan even though they are allowed in my county. They won’t ship to your state either. I have Tiben and it produced last year, but it is still small to compare to others. I will be cloning a 2nd plant this summer.
it would be great if somebody bought Kirovchanka for me!! I would pay for a 2nd for yourself, and all the postage. I could ask the state to give me clearance and show it to Raintree, it just would be a big hassle. I will probably go that route.
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wish they would recind these draconian laws. there are so few white pines left anyway, i doubt if it would make any difference. the clearcutting around here has eradicated more white pines than WPBR has in 100 yrs! id buy land and grow commercial if i could.
would you swap some tiben cuttings for some goldens come early spring?
I think I have those from Amazon was it? No worries, just pm me your address.
Need anything else look at list here’
https://growingfruit.org/t/iso-kirovchanka-black-currant-rare-pluots/19680
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Consort is tasty and good variety. I’m growing it in Maryland, zone 7. There are others, though, and probably better ones too.
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