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SeedStepsYour vegetable garden, one step at a time.My gardenEen doornloze kruisbesachtige oogst met cassisaroma geeft een andere ervaring dan afzonderlijke zwarte bessen of kruisbessen.
By Redactie MoestuinApp · updated
A thornless, gooseberry-like harvest with a blackcurrant aroma offers a different experience from separate blackcurrants or gooseberries.
Give the vigorous bush ample space; sun or light shade and moist soil with drainage.
Free-standing bush: Allow room for the mature bush. Plant and water during establishment. Remove weak and crossing wood. Taste fruit until sweet enough.
Spacious mixed fruit border: Put josta behind lower currants. Leave picking room along the bush. Mulch without burying the stem base. Thin older branches gradually.
An open bush and gradual wood renewal; do not force into an undersized pot.
A berry corner can range from sharp red currants to mild white ones and pronounced blackcurrant flavour. Label cultivars when planting and make the bushes accessible for picking and maintenance. A row of bushes makes it easier to see which cultivar ripens early or later than a tangled mixed hedge. With limited space, choose the intended use first: eating straight from the bush, juice, jam or a combination.
Keep the base of the plant accessible for watering and weed control. A mulch layer can cover the soil, but leave the base of the bush clear. Prune with an understanding of the fruiting wood: blackcurrants are renewed differently from redcurrants and whitecurrants. Gooseberries also have their own bush structure. Do not cut all berry bushes into the same shape simply because they grow together.
Colour is a cultivar characteristic, not a universal ripeness test. A white or green selection will not eventually turn red or black. Compare a ripe berry for juiciness, firmness and aroma. A different balance may suit jam than fresh eating. When tasting, therefore, also note how you used the berry; a sour berry may provide exactly the fresh contrast you want in the kitchen.
Josta: UPOV: black, medium-sized fruit; later ripening.
Checked on 2026-10-12. This guide was originally written using the listed sources. Growing advice from other countries is not a local weather forecast.