Thanks, but I have very limited space, I would rather plant apple then Honeysuckle.
Yes, they really renamed them. I tried several names to translate back to Russian and search - nothing came up by the translated names.
Trade offer was directed to anybody interested, Sorry my bad, I meant that as a general comment, not directed at you. I myself have no desire to grow apples, i would rather have peaches and plums. Good apples are all over this state and cheap too. I know I could still grow some unique cultivars for sure, but just don’t have interest. Well I do have some, but I like you have no room at all! Man if I start apples, my wife will divorce me! I have one idea about an espalier on the side of the house. I may get a couple down the road…
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Want Minaj Smirou?
I can give you as many cuttings of this as you could possibly want. Heck, I think I’ve even got an already layered branch.
I’ve got to try and cook some of these, as I am not a big black currant fan fresh (though I love the juice in ginger ale as a non-alcoholic beverage)
Scott
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I have two of them. I too don’t really care for them fresh. But they seem a candidate for cooking, jam, etc. Also maybe mixed with other fruit. I’m going to have enough this year to do something with.
My daughter and I both love black currants fresh, but I won’t eat Miraj Smirou. They taste awful to me. So don’t judge them all if that is the only cultivar you’ve tried fresh. Black currants, also get sweeter and less astringent as they hang after having turned black.
I like Swedish Black and Titania, as well as others, fresh.
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Are the sweeter ones less cat pissy?
(Quite an unappetizing description, huh?)
I may shovel prune this one this year. It’s got the best spot for currants in my yard and while it produces heavily (1 bush and I can fill a 5 gal bucket with fruit easily) and I eat none of them.
Scott
Black currants do have a distinctive taste, which some people don’t like.
If you like the taste of black currant candies or jam, then you will probably like fresh black currants of good varieties that have been allowed to maximally ripen.
I look forward to them and seek them out when they are at their best. I avoid Minaj Smirou, and it has objectionable flavor components to my palate.
I’m not a huge fan of the flavor but am a huge fan of the health benefits. We freeze all of ours and use them in smoothies. Mixed with the flavors of the other fruits and some honey they’re quite good and I miss them when they’re gone.
I enjoy them well enough fresh, but that’s when I just had a handful or two to nibble per day. This year I should be loaded. For fresh eating I liked Titania least last year, Black September better. This year I should get to sample Blackdown.
I should consider getting a steam juicer. Anyone have recommendations?
I got one off amazon last year to use with my cherries. I wasnt especially impressed and would rather run them through a regular juicer or even just blend them to a puree and freeze them like that. Thats what I ended up doing with many of may raspberries and cherries last summer.
This is my first year getting many currents, although still just a few cups from three bushes.
The best for flavor of my three is Belaruskaja, then Titania and then last is Minaj Smirou. Minaj was the first to ripen and I thought it tasted pretty good, but now that the others are ripe it is a lot less flavorful and interesting.
Unfortunately productivity is the exact opposite of my flavor preferences, which may be the result of location.
I was very tempted to try Chernaya Lisovenko from hbusa as well, but not sure where I would put it. Anyone growing it and can give a review?
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Another source for Chernaya, has any ordered from this guy before? http://beyondvineyard.com/
Im tempted to try it and like the price better than HBUSA, hell ship 5 cuttings for $14 total…
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https://www.gardenfocused.co.uk/fruitarticles/blackcurrants/blackcurrant-cuttings.php
Good black current prop instructions.
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In my environment, on a zone 3b southeast facing slope above Anchorage, I’ve found Minaj Smyriou to be my favorite; sourced from Whitman Farms in Portland. Like the taste (better with age), they freeze well, and it is a very easy bush to propagate. I’ve taken cuttings in the fall and just plunge into a raised bed, then again in early spring at pruning time. Three years to decent production - you can hasten this by amending with N rich manure early in the spring of the second year it is in its final destination.
We have a lot more thaw and freeze activity during the winter here now and some shrubs and bushes don’t like that.
I think @clarkinks likes his steam juicer.
I add one cup of any juice, heat on medium low and bring to a light boil for 10 minutes. During the boil I mash them with a potato masher. The longer you simmer the more the pulp breaks down and you get a thick syrup. With a regular juicer all the pulp is removed.
So how I remove pulp and seeds is with a fine meshed strainer. I got mine at a local grocery chain. I use a pestle to press some of the pulp through and all of the juice. You could use a wooden spoon. I like the pestle as it applies even pressure throughout.
I love this strainer! It lasted about 4 years and I bought another. The reason I do it this way is you need very little equipment and it makes a decent volume of juice very quickly. Not really that messy either. You have the pot, the pestle, the sieve, and any measuring cups to wash and that’s it.
After I strain I add a small amount of sweetener. I try to use Blue Agave syrup as it has a low glycemic index, so one needs less insulin to process the syrup then and equal amount of cane sugar. I bring to a boil 1 minute and done. One could add sweetener before straining and skip this step. I do it this was because the sweetener thickens the syrup, thus harder to strain. One can leave unsweetened too.
Oh I also freeze the berries before processing as it busts all the cells, and they melt to liquid easier.
I agree. I was not impressed, yet I know a few growers who love it. Why one must really taste each cultivar to decide. I’m still growing it all the same.
Lee Reich likes this one. I added it last year. Still small though. Needs a couple more years to get big.
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i have a steam juicer . it works good. i help it along by mashing the berries with a potato masher after steaming for 15min. i get a little pulp but not too much.
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these were callused over bottom heat at 68f for 2 weeks then left at low temp in garage for 2 more weeks…
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I, too, just poked some currant cuttings into the ground about five or six inches (actually where had dug the potatoes) in the fall, and nearly all of them rooted and leafed out the next spring. No bother, no fuss. Has anyone tried this with haskaps?
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