Ribes rubrum 'Blanka' (W)

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whitecurrant 'Blanka'

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A heavy-cropping late season whitecurrant cultivar with transparent ivory-coloured fruit ripening in late summer

Position

Full sun, Partial shade

Soil Types

Clay, Loam, Sand

Max Height

1-1.5 metres

Max Spread

1-1.5 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
2–5 years
Max Spread
1-1.5 metres
Max Height
1-1.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Clay Loam Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained
pH
Acid or Neutral

Position

Full sun Partial shade
Aspect
North–facing or West–facing or South–facing or East–facing
Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H6

Colour & Scent

Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Grossulariaceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Bushy
Genus
Ribes can be deciduous or evergreen shrubs, sometimes spiny, with simple, usually palmately lobed leaves and small tubular or bell-shaped, solitary or racemose flowers borne in spring or summer, followed by juicy, sometimes edible berries
Name Status
Accepted
Horticultural Group

Horticultural Classification Codes

Horticultural Classification Codes are often given to genera which have a large number of species or cultivars. They are used to categorise cultivated plants based on specific, shared characteristics such as shape, colour, size or flowering time, and can be displayed as letters or numbers

For example:
Dahlia ‘Sunset Kate (Sin) = Single flower
Rosa ‘Marigold’ (HT) = Hybrid Tea

This genus produces whitecurrants

How to Grow

Cultivation

Grow in a well-drained, fertile soil with a neutral to slightly acid pH. Full sun is preferred, but partial shade is tolerated and plants can be trained against a north wall. Grow as a permanent framework as a bush, standard, cordon or fan. Keep the around the bushes free of other plants. Mulch with well rotted compost, manure or bark particularly on dry soils. See further redcurrant cultivation advice

Propagation

Propagate by hardwood cuttings in autumn

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Wildlife gardens
  • Wall side borders
  • Edible fruit

Pruning

Main pruning is carried out in dormant season, along with summer pruning of vigorous laterals - see redcurrant cultivation advice

Pests

May be susceptible to aphids, currant blister aphid, shield bug, scale insects and gooseberry sawfly

Diseases

May be susceptible to a leaf spot, powdery mildews, coral spot and sometimes honey fungus