Ribes rubrum Jonkheer van Tets - Redcurrant

The 'Jonkheer van Tets' Redcurrant Bush is an early and highly productive variety, recommended for regions with cold winters. Self-fertile, it produces long clusters of slightly acidic, large-sized red fruits. This vigorous variety shows good resistance to diseases. Easy to grow in non-scorching sun and well-drained or even poor soil, requiring support. Plant from October to March for a harvest starting from late June. The 'Jonkheer van Tets' Redcurrant variety originates from the Netherlands.

The Redcurrant Bush, also known as Ribes rubrum, belongs to the Grossulariaceae family, like the Gooseberry Bush. It is a plant that has been cultivated for a long time and grows spontaneously in many temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, from Europe to Siberia and to Manchuria. The Redcurrant is a bushy, non-thorny shrub with a clump-like habit of slightly stiff, sparse branches, whose wood is soft. This very hardy bush will reach 1.50m (4.9ft) in all directions. The foliage is deciduous, composed of palmate, lobed, and aromatic leaves of a medium green.

Flowering occurs in spring (in April for this variety), in the form of clusters of small, inconspicuous green to brownish, bee-friendly flowers. Fruiting occurs mainly on one and two year old branches. The bush is then covered with numerous clusters of small, round, translucent berries, containing small seeds. Harvesting takes place as the fruits ripen. The Jonkheer van Tets variety produces long clusters of red fruits, to be picked from late June. Its large-sized fruits have a juicy, slightly acidic, red flesh. Whether white or red, the currant is a low-calorie fruit, rich in minerals and trace elements as well as potassium, calcium, and phosphorus. It also provides a good source of vitamin C and fibre.

Use fresh currants in jelly or pastries, for tart fillings or sorbet making. In the garden, this modest bush becomes attractive when it is laden with its long clusters that play in the summer light. The pleasure is threefold, visual and gastronomic and also olfactory when its warm foliage perfumes the garden. It pairs well with white currant varieties, gooseberry bushes, as well as shrubs that offer beautiful (inedible) fruits, such as Leycesteria formosa, beautyberries, Nandina domestica and its varieties, Japanese quinces, small-leaved Cotoneaster, St. John's Wort Magical Beauty, symphorines... For small gardens or to save space, it is wise to train this currant bush against a wall or grow it as a standard. Note that the currant bush can be included in an orchard on the terrace, as it performs quite well in large pots, with a depth of about forty centimetres (1.3ft), taking care, however, not to water it with too-hard water.