Lovely day down the allotment. Sunny and dry, and the first day this year ith birdsong. Pulled down the second old, old compost bin. Weeded under the blackcurrants, pulling up grass and moss and getting the ivy off the stools. Then put down approx. 1/2 of the manure around them as mulch.
Once you’ve got your eye in pruning blackcurrants, it’s not too difficult to see which branches to prune: first take off the diseased and broken ones; then cut back those which stop you getting into the bush. Most of the branches grow in the expected way — generally upwards — but a few of them go off at crazy angles: these are the ones to take off.
The way blackcurrants grow is so interesting. Branches that touch the ground, root, and then a new bush grows. I think there were only two bushes put in originally, but there’s about 7 distinct stools now I’ve cut back a few of these self-layers. It’s not as scary as cutting the umbilical cord that seperated my daughter from her mum, although I’m glad I’ve been studying the RBGE practical certificate in horticulture to know what’s happening. And I can recommend the Panton Street community midwives, too
The plot looks much better today than the first time I saw it, one year ago
