Content
- Harvest currants - So you pick the delicious berries
- Not all berries ripen at the same time
- By which you recognize ripe currants
- The best time to pick
- Currants are delicate
- Tips & Tricks
Harvest currants - So you pick the delicious berries
After warm spring, currants ripen from the end of June. Until August, there are constantly new ripe berries. A few tips to help you recognize that the fruits can be picked and how to harvest them properly.
Not all berries ripen at the same time
When the redcurrant crop starts, it also depends on which varieties you have planted in the garden:
The first red and white currants are ripe from the end of June a little earlier than the black fruits. Their harvest season begins only in mid-July.
By which you recognize ripe currants
If the fruits have taken on a full color and all the berries of a panicle are evenly red, yellow or black, the currants can be harvested.
The berries are full and not wrinkled. They exude a pleasant scent. When touching the panicles, the currants fall almost automatically into the hand.
If in doubt, do a taste test. If the red and white berries taste sweet with a slightly sour undertone, they are ripe. Blackcurrants have a rather bitter taste.
The best time to pick
Pick the shrubs two to three times a week. If the berries are left hanging on the bush too long, they lose their aroma.
For picking, a sunny morning is best if the shrubs are dry. Moist or wet berries rot faster.
Currants are delicate
Avoid pressing the delicate berries when harvesting. It is better to cut or pick the whole panicle.
Carefully place the harvested panicles in a basket and do not stack too many on top of each other.
Pressure points on the fruits lead to loss of water and spoil the berries faster. On the panicles, currants stay longer and can be stored in the fridge for one day.
Tips & Tricks
Not only humans, also the birds especially love the red currant varieties very much. So that you can harvest enough berries, at the latest from the beginning of June you should stretch a net over the bushes, which keeps the birds away. With white and black currants a special protection is not necessarily necessary.