Clove currant (golden currant)

About Clove currant (golden currant)

Clove currant is a native North American shrub whose yellow, trumpet-shaped spring flowers smell like cloves. Its berries ripen from yellow to red and finally black or dark purple, and make good jam, jelly and pie. Like all currants it can host white pine blister rust, so check your state's rules before planting.

Hardy to zone 3: the University of Minnesota rates the clove currant 'Crandall' excellent to very good in zones 3-5. Most references put its southern limit at about zone 8. It is native to the western and central US (US Forest Service).

When to plant

Timing is counted from your average last spring frost (and first fall frost). Sow & Tell works out the actual dates for your ZIP code.

Before you buy, check with your state department of agriculture: North Carolina bans growing any currant or gooseberry (Ribes) because they host white pine blister rust (NC Department of Agriculture). Plants begin fruiting after about 3 years (NRCS). The shrub grows 3 to 10 feet tall and can spread by underground stems (Forest Service).

Soil

Grows in a wide range of soils, from fine to coarse loams (Forest Service; NRCS).

Have the soil tested and mix in compost as the test suggests (University of Minnesota, for currants).

Feeding

• Late fall each year: well-composted manure. Spread a few shovelfuls around each plant (University of Minnesota, for currants).

Harvest

Berries ripen in mid to late summer, going from green to yellow to red and finally black or dark purple (NRCS; Forest Service). Pick when fully colored.

Clove currant flowers in spring (about April-June) and fruits once a year, mainly June to August; plants usually start fruiting after about 3 years.

Varieties (1)

'Crandall' is the only named clove currant cultivar described by the sources we could open (Penn State, University of Minnesota, USDA NRCS). NRCS notes other selections exist but does not name them.

Pests to watch for

Spotted wing drosophila

Diseases and problems

White pine blister rust

In the kitchen

Made into jam, jelly, pie and even ice cream (NRCS).

Keeping it: Refrigerate fully colored berries and use them within a few days, or freeze them.

Safety: No toxic parts were noted in the sources we checked. Its main risk is to trees: currants are alternate hosts of white pine blister rust, which infects five-needled pines (Forest Service).

Pets: Not listed by the ASPCA