Easy on the eye, a bit less so on the nose
The early bird, etc, etc. It’s the same with the early plant.
Many spring-flowering plants are at least a couple of weeks early, but Nature knows best. So it may well be a good year for the likes of the flowering currant – a bit of sunshine and a glimpse of blue sky always helps emphasise the vivid scarlet of Ribes sanguineum.
In spring (normally March, but this year February) the blooms explode in a mass of colour; which is why it’s such a popular shrub, even if its blooms are pretty unpleasant on the nose. For the rest of the year, Ribes sanguineum tends to be just another leafy shrub.
But that doesn’t stop people planting it. It will grow just about anywhere, is propagated with ease and normally needs just a light going-over with the shears after the flowers have faded. Ribes can be deciduous or evergreen shrubs and, although many are grown as ornamentals, a few are cultivated for their berries (blackcurrants, for example).
Among those grown just for their flowers, “Pulborough Scarlet” is far and away the most common. It’s a mediumsized, bushy deciduous shrub packed with drooping clusters of small, deep crimson flowers.
But there are pink flowerers and there are those, like “White Icicle”, which, unsurprisingly, have white flowers. They still smell pretty gross, but it’s worth suffering the aroma just to enjoy the blooms.
Like most ornamental currants, “White Icicle” is a vigorous deciduous shrub which can quite quickly grow to six or seven feet in height.
Pruning is the key to keeping it under control, whether it’s being grown as a hedge or just a specimen at the back of a border.
A healthy plant will put on several inches of fresh growth each year, so it’s best to cut it back after flowering.