Oregon · Washington · Idaho
When to plant currants
Plant in the garden: Portland and Seattle Mar 1 – Apr 26; Spokane Apr 1 – May 27; Boise Mar 20 – May 15; Bend Apr 28 – Jun 23.
Your dates in
Currants are compact, thornless bushes grown for small, tart berries in clusters, used for jam, jelly, syrups and baking. Black currants are rich and musky and especially high in vitamin C, while red and white currants are brighter and more delicate. The dried currants sold in stores are usually small raisins, not this fruit.
Puts currants on your free plan, with dates for your town and a spot in your beds.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Sun
- Full sun west of the Cascades; afternoon shade east
- Spacing
- 4 to 5 feet apart
- Planting depth
- An inch or two deeper than in the pot
- Frost
- Hardy perennial; comes back every year
- First harvest
- A small crop in year two; full crops from year three
Red, white and black currants are among the few fruits that crop in part shade. Pick black currant varieties resistant to white pine blister rust, a disease they can spread to five-needle pines.
Currant planting dates
| Towns | Plant in the garden |
|---|---|
| Portland, OR, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Bend and Redmond, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
| Astoria, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
Dates for six main cities. For any of the other 80 towns, type it in the box at the top of the page or browse all towns.
| Gresham, OR, Oregon City and West Linn, OR, Portland, OR, St. Helens and Scappoose, OR, Wilsonville and Canby, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Hillsboro and Beaverton, OR | Mar 5 – Apr 30 |
| Corvallis and Albany, OR, Eugene, OR, Salem, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Cottage Grove, OR | Mar 13 – May 8 |
| McMinnville and Newberg, OR | Mar 4 – Apr 29 |
| Ashland and Talent, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Grants Pass, OR, Medford, OR, Roseburg, OR | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Astoria, OR, Brookings and Gold Beach, OR, Coos Bay and North Bend, OR, Newport and Lincoln City, OR, Tillamook, OR | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|
| Bend and Redmond, OR, Klamath Falls, OR | Apr 28 – Jun 23 |
|---|---|
| Burns, OR | Apr 30 – Jun 25 |
| Lakeview, OR | Apr 23 – Jun 18 |
| Madras, OR, Prineville, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
| Baker City, OR, Enterprise and Joseph, OR, John Day, OR | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
|---|---|
| Hermiston, OR, Hood River, OR, Ontario, OR, Pendleton, OR, The Dalles, OR | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| La Grande, OR | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Bremerton and Port Orchard, WA, Everett, WA, Kent, Renton and Auburn, WA, Seattle and Tacoma, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|---|
| Olympia, WA | Mar 18 – May 13 |
| Shelton, WA | Mar 16 – May 11 |
| Anacortes, WA, Bellingham, WA, Friday Harbor and the San Juans, WA, Mount Vernon and Burlington, WA, Oak Harbor and Whidbey Island, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
|---|
| Aberdeen and Hoquiam, WA, Forks, WA, Long Beach and Ilwaco, WA | Mar 25 – May 20 |
|---|---|
| Port Angeles, WA, Port Townsend, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Sequim, WA | Mar 10 – May 5 |
| Centralia and Chehalis, WA | Mar 11 – May 6 |
|---|---|
| Longview and Kelso, WA, Vancouver, WA | Mar 1 – Apr 26 |
| Chelan, WA, Wenatchee, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Leavenworth, WA, Omak and Okanogan, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Winthrop and Twisp, WA | Apr 3 – May 29 |
| Ellensburg, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Ephrata and Quincy, WA, Moses Lake, WA, Sunnyside, Grandview and Prosser, WA, Tri-Cities (Pasco, Kennewick, Richland), WA, Walla Walla, WA | Mar 20 – May 15 |
| Goldendale, WA | Apr 7 – Jun 2 |
| Yakima, WA | Mar 27 – May 22 |
| Colville, WA, Pullman, WA, Spokane, WA | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|
| Bonners Ferry, ID, Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls, ID, Sandpoint, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|
| Lewiston, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| Moscow, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
| Boise and Meridian, ID, Emmett, ID, Nampa and Caldwell, ID | Mar 20 – May 15 |
|---|---|
| McCall, ID | May 11 – Jul 6 |
| Burley and Rupert, ID, Idaho Falls, ID, Pocatello, ID, Rexburg, ID, Twin Falls, ID | Apr 1 – May 27 |
|---|---|
| Salmon, ID | Apr 20 – Jun 15 |
Currant year at a glance
| Task | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plant | Mar | Apr | ||||||||||
| Harvest | Jun | Jul |
Around Portland. Colder towns, especially east of the Cascades, run a few weeks later; the table above has your town's planting dates. Harvest months are for an established plant.
How to grow currants
- Pick a sunny spot with soil that drains well, and mix in an inch or two of compost.
- Plant currant bushes on your city's dates, 4 to 5 feet apart. An inch or two deeper than in the pot.
- Prune in late winter: keep about ten stems of different ages and cut out any older than three or four years. Mulch to keep roots cool.
- Harvest: Pick whole clusters (strigs) once all the berries are colored. Red currants hang on the bush for a couple of weeks; black currants are best picked as soon as they're ripe.
Growing currants in your part of the Northwest
The same plant behaves differently on the wet west side, the foggy coast and the dry, colder east side.
West-side valleys
Willamette Valley, Puget Sound, southern Oregon
Currants grow well in the cool climate. Imported currantworm (a sawfly) can strip leaves in spring.
East of the Cascades
Columbia Basin, Yakima, Boise, Spokane, north Idaho
Currants like afternoon shade in hot summers and need steady water.
High desert and mountain towns
Central Oregon, high eastern Oregon valleys, McCall, Salmon
Currants are very hardy and do well here.
More currant varieties
More widely sold picks that do well somewhere in the Northwest. The tag says which part of the Northwest suits each one best.
Rovada
Long strings of large, bright red berries that are easy to pick. Late-flowering, which helps it avoid spring frost damage, and very productive.
Both sides
Red Lake
A long-time favorite red currant with medium-large, tart berries ideal for jelly. Hardy and dependable.
Both sides
Blanka
Translucent white berries that are a little sweeter and milder than red currants, good for eating fresh. Heavy yields on a sturdy bush.
Both sides
Titania
A vigorous, high-yielding black currant resistant to white pine blister rust. Rich, full flavor for jam and syrup.
Both sides
Consort
An older rust-resistant black currant with strong, musky flavor. Self-fertile and very hardy.
Both sides
How much to grow
How many to plant
For a family of four, 2 to 4 bushes.
What to expect
About 4 to 8 pounds per mature bush.
Storing the harvest
Keep a week in the fridge. Freeze whole strigs.
Key numbers
- Full sun to part shadeSun
- 5.5–7.0Soil pH
- 15–20 yearsProductive life
- CurrantwormBiggest risk
Top care tip: Prune in late winter, keeping about ten stems and cutting out any older than three or four years.
Growing notes
What makes the difference in Northwest gardens, in plain language.
Red, white and black currants
Red and white currants make sparkling, tart jelly and are lovely raw in small amounts. Black currants are stronger and musky, best for jam, syrup and cordial. All are hardy, long-lived bushes that crop well in cool summers and in spots with a few hours of shade, which makes them good fits for Northwest gardens.
White pine blister rust
Black currants (and to a lesser extent other currants and gooseberries) are an alternate host of white pine blister rust, a disease that kills five-needle pines like western white pine. Plant rust-resistant black currant varieties such as Titania, Consort or Crusader, especially if you live near forests with white pines.
Pruning and pests
Currants fruit best on two- and three-year-old wood. Each late winter, cut out stems older than three or four years at ground level and keep about ten stems of mixed ages. Black currants fruit on younger wood, so prune them a bit harder.
In spring, watch for imported currantworm: green, spotted larvae that start under the lower leaves and can strip a bush in a week. Pick them off or spray with spinosad. Net the bushes as berries color.
Good neighbors
Good neighbors
- Gooseberries. Same needs and pruning style.
Keep apart
- White pines. Black currants can host white pine blister rust; choose resistant varieties near pines.
Pests and problems
What most often goes wrong with currants in Northwest gardens, how to spot it and what to do.
Imported currantworm
Signs: Green larvae strip leaves in spring.
What to do: Check under lower leaves in April and May and pick them off.
Currant aphids
Signs: Red, blistered leaves.
What to do: Mostly cosmetic; hose off early.
Birds
Signs: Berries vanish.
What to do: Net the bushes.
Common questions about growing currants
When should I plant currants in Oregon, Washington and Idaho?
Plant in the garden: Mar 1 – Apr 26 in Portland and Seattle, Apr 1 – May 27 in Spokane, Mar 20 – May 15 in Boise and Apr 28 – Jun 23 in Bend. Pick your town at the top of the page for your own dates.
Can currants grow in shade?
Yes, better than most fruit. A few hours of direct sun is enough, and afternoon shade helps in hot eastern valleys.
Is red-flowering currant the same plant?
It's a related native shrub grown for its spring flowers. Its berries are edible but dry and bland; grow red, white or black currants for fruit.
Do I need two currant bushes?
Red and white currants are self-fertile and crop well alone. Black currants set fruit alone too, but most give bigger crops with a second variety nearby.
See what else to plant in March or April.
Strawberries
Blueberries
Raspberries
Blackberries
Grapes
Hardy kiwi
Honeyberries
Gooseberries
Elderberries