hello, im looking for cuttings of gooseberries, currants, josta berries etc. my trade list is small and very incomplete at this time, i do have lots more to add. if you dont find anything on my trade list that u want please let me know as i probably have what u want. thanks so much! jessica aka garden_n_mom

I've been having this exact same problem with my Red Lake Currant. I planted it this spring, and as winter is coming, I fear that it wont make it. This is actually the first place that I've been able to find a picture of this problem, though i did find one that looked similar. The similar picture said that the problem was a K deficiency, but it seems like you've been using plenty of fertilizer, so I wouldn't think that is the issue. I've hunted for months now for an answer, and am no closer than before. I know that this post is a little old, but I'm still in dire need of help if anyone knows what to do.

I have tried some of the currants recommended for Zone 9 (most are not) and the only one which has been successful is the 'Crandall' Ribes aureum, which resembles a black currant, but with a different flavor. Sweet enough to eat from the bush when ripe, fragrant flowers in spring. There are some native California currants and gooseberries, but I don't think they are very palatable. Why not grow things that people can't grow in other places -- subtropicals, yellow kiwis, etc. Can you grow Natal Plum where you are? The best varieties have fruit that resembles cranberries or lingonberries a little in flavor. Or how about musk strawberries instead of lingonberries? Of course, everybody always wants to grow the things that do well somewhere else.

Nurseries in Virginia and South Carolina sometimes carry them. North Carolina will eventually come around and lift the ban. It may go to a county by county restriction like many other states. White Pine is usually grown over in the mountains by the lumber industry. It doesn't grow well in the coastal plain or the piedmont. White Pine Blister was brought to this country by the lumber industry when they imported saplings from Europe. The lumber industry in a panic over the spread of this devastating disease got the government to enact strict laws forbidding all Ribes species (gooseberries and currants) in home gardens and orchards. The government even went so far as to send out work crews that killed native Ribes in the woods. I get it. No one planned on this disease. No one knew anything about it when it was discovered. I can tolerate the restrictions while scientist work out a solution. I cannot tolerate the action of removing this native fruit from our forests - Ribes are important wildlife food. The ban is being lifted everywhere because it didn't do any good - not because it was good policy. In the meantime both pines and berries are developing a natural resistance to the disease. Most of the named cultivars have some degree of resistance. Most of the wild or older varieties do not. White Pine Blister is only one of the many diseases this group of plants can get. It is easy to spot and a good gardener could easily prune away any diseased branches. Someday NC will wake up.