Blackcurrant Little Black Sugar - Ribes nigrum

The Blackcurrant or Ribes nigrum 'Little Black Sugar' is a new selection chosen for its particularly compact habit suitable for container cultivation, its large sweet-flavoured fruits and its excellent resistance to 'white disease', also known as powdery mildew. Its early ripening will also delight impatient gardeners who can start picking its beautiful black berries from the end of June, and harvest them to make delicious jams. A treasure of indulgence for the terrace, balcony, or small urban gardens!

The Blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum) belongs to the Grossulariaceae family, like its close relatives the Gooseberries. It is a deciduous shrub native to regions ranging from the Pyrenees to Central Asia. Cultivated since the 16th century, the Blackcurrant grows naturally in the cool woods of northeastern Europe.

The fruits of the blackcurrant appear on 2-year-old branches and become rarer on 4-year-old and older branches that should be pruned. Harvest when the fruits are fully black and starting to fall on the ground. Wait for the fruits to reach full ripeness before harvesting. The 'Little Black Sugar' variety offers clusters with large fruits that have a sweet, juicy, aromatic flavour with a hint of acidity. Blackcurrant is rich in tannins, flavours, vitamin C and C2. It can be consumed fresh in a mixed-berry salad, as juice, syrup, jams or jellies, in pastries (pies, charlottes, and sorbets), or as an accompaniment to savoury dishes. It is used in the production of liqueurs and nectars. Blackcurrant can be dried or frozen, providing a reserve of fruits for the winter.

The 'Little Black Sugar' Blackcurrant has an upright, bushy habit, branching out, with a height of 90 cm (35in) and a width of approximately 70-80 cm (28-32in). The plant reaches its mature size in three years. It is a very hardy shrub, resistant to temperatures down to -20°C (-4°F) but it is sensitive to summer drought. The deciduous leaves fall in autumn and reappear in spring. They are large, flat, with three to five lobes and toothed edges, bright green in colour and pleasantly fragrant when crushed. Leaves, fruits, and buds are intensely aromatic due to the presence of glands containing essential oils, which are used in perfumery. The bark is smooth and reddish on young branches and darkens with age.

The flowering occurs in spring, in April for this early variety, 'Little Black Sugar'. It takes the form of small inconspicuous bell-shaped flowers. It is followed by the formation of large berries with a black and shiny skin, gathered in long clusters. Some varieties of Blackcurrant are self-fertile, while others require the proximity of another variety for proper pollination. The 'Little Black Sugar' variety is self-fertile. It is important in a Blackcurrant plantation, as in any plantation, to alternate varieties and species when space allows: pollination will be favoured, even if the variety is self-fertile, and the risk of diseases will be limited. In the garden, create a small edible hedge by mixing Blackcurrants, Gooseberries, and Raspberries, for example along the edge of a vegetable garden, or place the Blackcurrant within a flower shrub border.