Ben hope blackcurrant how to grow delicious and nutritious blackcurrants, in our Grow Guide. Blackcurrants are delicious, easy to grow, and very good for you. The small dark purple berries are packed with vitamin C and other medicinal benefits. Although they have a sharp flavour, juicy blackcurrants can be eaten fresh or added to pies, jams and cordials.

Feed with a high potash fertiliser weekly during the growing season and mulch the soil around the plant with well-rotted manure, leaf mould or compost. You may consider netting the fruit against birds. Blackcurrants grow best in a sunny, sheltered spot where fruits can ripen into fat, juicy berries. Plant bare-root blackcurrant bushes in autumn and pot grown plants at any time of the year.

If growing in a container choose a large tub or barrel. Blackcurrants thrive in deep soil, so dig a generous planting hole and add plenty of well-rotted compost or manure and fertiliser to the soil. After planting, prune the bush right back. In spring, feed with pelleted chicken manure or other high potash fertiliser, and add a thick mulch. Keep weed-free during the growing season and when the fruits start to mature, net your plants to protect from the birds.

Prune blackcurrants in autumn and winter. New varieties of Blackcurrant bushes have good resistance to common problems such as mildew and frost damage. However, Blackcurrant gall midge can cause leaves to dry and drop off. An insecticidal soap spray can help to control this. Birds love the berries as much as we do, so net your fruit bushes to protect them. Blackcurrants are ready to pick when they are dark and shiny, but still firm.