How to take fruit bush cuttings

How to take fruit bush cuttings

Get new currant and gooseberry plants for free with this guide on taking cuttings from them.

A table displaying which months are best to sow, plant and harvest.
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
At its best
At its best

Plant is not at its best in January

Plant is not at its best in February

Plant is not at its best in March

Plant is not at its best in April

Plant is not at its best in May

Plant is at its best in June

Plant is at its best in July

Plant is at its best in August

Plant is not at its best in September

Plant is not at its best in October

Plant is not at its best in November

Plant is not at its best in December

To do
To do

Do To do in January

Do To do in February

Do not To do in March

Do not To do in April

Do not To do in May

Do not To do in June

Do not To do in July

Do not To do in August

Do not To do in September

Do not To do in October

Do To do in November

Do To do in December

It’s easy to propagate your favourite fruit bushes by taking hardwood cuttings from healthy plants over winter.

Suitable fruits include gooseberries, blackcurrants, whitecurrants and redcurrants and after about a year’s time you’ll be rewarded with healthy new plants, all for free.

As well as fruit bushes, you can also take hardwood cuttings in winter from lots of other woody perennials, including roses, viburnums, dogwoods, willow and forsythia.

More cuttings content:

Follow these easy steps to take cuttings from fruit bushes like blackcurrants and gooseberries.

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You Will Need

  • Fruit bushes
  • Secateurs
  • Spade

Total time:

Step 1

Select a healthy stem of the current season’s growth, and cut it from the plant right at the base. Select only one or two stems from each bush.

Taking hardwood cuttings
Taking hardwood cuttings

Step 2

Reduce the cutting down to 25-30cm long, trimming just below a bud at the base, and above a bud at the top. Remove soft growth at the stem tip. With redcurrants, whitecurrants and gooseberries, remove all but the top three or four buds to create a clear stem. Leave all the buds on blackcurrants.

Reducing the cutting
Reducing the cutting

Step 3

Choose a warm, bright site with free-draining soil, and make a vertical slit in the soil with a spade. Then put a layer of sharp sand or grit in the base of the slit trench.

Making a vertical slit in the soil
Making a vertical slit in the soil

Step 4

Insert the cuttings to about half their depth, spacing them about 20cm apart. Firm the soil back around them, then water in well. Water in dry spells and the cuttings should be ready to transplant in about a year’s time.

Placing the cuttings in the slit
Placing the cuttings in the slit
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