Currant Arkadia

Late-ripening variety, developed at the Zonal Research Institute of Horticulture of the North-East named after N.V. Rudnitsky by crossing the varieties Gracia and Slastena. Authors: G.A. Plenikina, G.N. Kosolapova, T.P. Ogoltsova, A.A. Rusinov. Under state variety testing since 2007.

Medium-height, medium-spreading bush. Stems are medium-thick, straight, hairless, matte, gray-silver.

Leaves are three- and five-lobed, large and medium-sized, green and yellowish-green. Leaf blade is bare, matte, wrinkled, concave, with deep notches. Leaf tips are sharp, the angle formed by the lobes is straight. Leaf base has a medium indentation. Teeth are sharp, short, curled.

Flowers are medium-sized, pale-pink. Sepals are medium-sized. Inflorescences are long and short. Berries are arranged medium and sparsely on the inflorescence. Inflorescence axis is medium, straight.

Berries are very large (average weight 2.7 g, maximum — 5.2 g), round, almost black or brown-black, sweet-sour refreshing taste (3.5 points), universal use. Skin is thin, few or medium seeds. Peduncle is medium, calyx is open. Chemical composition: total sugars — 8.4%, titratable acidity — 2.4%, ascorbic acid — 86.2 mg/100 g, pectic substances — 1.1%.

The variety is winter-hardy, high-yielding, average yield 8.3 t/ha (2.5 kg/plant), highly self-fertile, resistant to powdery mildew and bud mite.

Advantages of the variety: resistance to powdery mildew and high degree of resistance to bud mite, high and stable yield, outstanding large berry size. Berries are excellent for deep freezing.

Disadvantages of the variety: under heavy fruit load, branches bend significantly, and in some cases lie on the ground.