Growth, Development and Yield of Golden Currant (Ribes Aureum Pursh.) Depending on Cultivation System

Although golden currant has been grown in Latvia for several decades, mainly as ornamental plant, there is little experience on the most suitable cultivation systems for berry production. Two cultivars of golden currant — ‘Laila’ and ‘Uzbekistanskaya Krupnoplodnaya’, were planted in 2017 in two cultivation systems — vertical trellis and shrub form and assessed in the first two seasons with harvest. In addition, plots with and without organic mulch were established in the shrub system. The aim of the study was to investigate the growth, development and yield of golden currant depending on the cultivation system. All plants bloomed abundantly and practically at the same time in both years, while no significant differences were found between cultivation systems and cultivars. The annual growth of shoots in 2020 was significantly affected by the cultivation system — on average 0.66 m in the trellis system, 0.41 m in the shrub system in mulched plots, and 0.43 m in unmulched plots. Cultivar ‘Laila’ tended to produce longer shoots (average 0.51 m) than the ‘Uzbekistanskaya Krupnoplodnaya’ (average 0.47 m). The yield was low because of poor fruit set and did not significantly differ between cultivar and cultivation systems, though cultivar ‘Laila’ and shrub systems still had higher yields.