Well I guess an easier single question. So pretend the current is going to have 3 leaders coming out of the ground that i will train... If you were to stake each of them to bamboo stakes (the 6ft ones you can get from Lowes), why would you need wire connecting all the bamboo stakes as some pics Ive seen showed. The 3 leaders are just going up the bamboo and being tie to that, and nothing is being trellised on the wire itself, so can i just have 3 bamboo stakes and thats it? I debating having 2 larger wooden stakes at the ends, and wiring the bamboo to that via horizontal wires in case the currant plant itself gets heavy and the bamboo needs a little help standing up via those cross-wires. Any good ideas?

Well, I can't really help much further I'm afraid. Cherry red is not a variety we grow here as far as I know. But your description matches most red currants. White currants are the same species as red (Ribes rubrum syn. sativum) but bred for a different colour. There are also a few varieties of pink currants. Black currants are a different species (Ribes nigrum). Do you have more than one red currant bush? And are they all behaving the same? My only guess is that you have been sold a mislabelled variety. I can't think of any other reason why 'red' currants should not be red. Even when they fail to fill out or shrivel on the strig they are still red. Red currants keep well on the bush and can hang for 2 or 3 weeks as long as the birds don't get them. So if the berries are starting to disintegrate and are still not red I don't think they can be red currants. Have you tasted the berries? If you have not grown currants before you may not be expecting such a tart berry, which red/white currants are. They never get as sweet as, for example, a raspberry or strawberry. They also taste quite different from black currants. We had a mix of red and blackcurrant compote this evening and they need quite a bit of sugar. The only white currants I have had were not, to my mind, as good as red. But I haven't really given them a fair trial. Here is a link that might be useful: Red currant info.

Hi again Dogonit. Beeone tells it like it is- you'll be eating your own corn, tomatoes, even eggplant and sometimes canteloupe. I don't know what the laws are regarding transplanting from the wild, but my own thought is that if done with an eye to conservation it's harmless. Many populations tolerate a little thinning. We've moved a few things -ferns, larkspur, violas (Johnny jump-ups) that have done well, but we were disappointed when a ladyslipper orchid (cypripedium montanum) died out after a couple or three years. We would not have lifted that one except that it was in the way of road construction. Rocky Mountain Wildflowers is a good choice, in my mind. There are others, but the Craigheads know their stuff from long experience. Local nurseries should be good. I lean towards older, funkier outfits. My wife worked for one just west of Helena in the 60's, but the name escapes me. As to the weather, remember there's no such thing as bad weather, just inappropriate clothing. Lay in a supply of polypro long johns, fleece jackets and vests, Woolrich and Pendleton shirts, gloves and mitten liners, and a few nice wool sweaters, and, of course, Malone pants (with suspenders, I hope!) for real comfort. Dress in layers so you can customize yourself to the (ever-changing) conditions. Insulated coveralls can make a world of difference when you're ice-fishing on Canyon Ferry or Georgetown Lake in the middle of the night in December. Montana people aren't like those back east because they're rarer. In the east there are so many people they get in the way, and people need to shout to be noticed. In the West there's so few, outside of our little cities, that you tend to be glad to see them when you can, and a whisper can be a shout. At the same time, we tend to value our privacy, and the opportunity to be alone in the hills or on a lake or river somewhere. Sometimes the measure of a good friend is somebody you can be alone with without much talk- so you may run into a peculiar kind of taciturnity. Plus, there's some jerks, too, but that's another story ... Best, M

I planted several flowering red currant cuttings this fall thanks to another very generous PNW gardener. I am not looking for any of mine to be ready to bloom this year but the early bloom for my hummers was the reason I planted them. I also have native columbine that should bloom this year and I have a Rhododendron Catawbiense and a non native Azalea and coral honeysuckle. Red buckeye is an excellent choice if you have room for it. A large shrub in the same family is the Bottlebrush buckeye but it has white flowers, I believe, but the hummers also use it ( have sown the seeds of 5 of these in hopes of getting at least one or two. Penny