Blackcurrant Black Bells Organic 13cm

Blackbells® is a significant step forward in blackcurrant breeding. It has been bred for larger, sweeter berries than traditional varieties, so they are good enough to eat straight from the bush rather than only cooked. The fruit hangs in long bunches, or strigs, of 10 to 15 berries, which makes picking quick and easy. They are ready from mid-July, packed with vitamin C, and excellent fresh, in summer puddings and fruit salads, or made into jam and cordial. This plant has been organically grown.

Blackbells® forms an upright bush around 1.5m tall and 1m wide, so it fits into smaller gardens and fruit borders more easily than many spreading varieties. It is self-fertile, so a single bush will crop on its own. Give it a sunny or lightly shaded spot in fertile, moisture-retentive but well-drained soil, and dig in plenty of well-rotted manure or compost before planting. Set the plant a little deeper than it sat in its pot to encourage new shoots from the base.

Blackcurrants are hungry plants, so mulch around the base each spring with organic matter and water well in dry spells, particularly as the berries swell. Net the bush as the fruit colours to keep the birds off. Fruit is produced mainly on young wood, so once the bush is established, cut out a few of the oldest stems at ground level each winter to make room for vigorous new growth.

Supplied as a young plant in a 13cm pot, ready to grow on. Each plant is hand-selected before dispatch.

Available from Pengelly Garden Centre.