Currant Binary (Pavlova's Memory)

Mid-season ripening variety, developed at Pavlovskaya Experimental Station

of the All-Russian Research Institute of Plant Growing named after N.I. Vavilov from crossing varieties Naryadnaya and Ojebyn. Authors: E.V. Volodina, S.P. Khotimskaya, O.A. Tikhonova, T.V. Arsenyeva. Since 1991, it has been included in the State Register of varieties approved for use in the Northern, Northwestern, and Far Eastern regions.

The bush is tall, loosely branched, moderately upright. Growing shoots are of medium thickness, green and pinkish-purple (with uneven color distribution along the shoot), hairy. Woody shoots are thick, evenly tapering toward the apex, straight or slightly curved, brown, hairy. Buds are solitary, large, egg-shaped, sharp, bright, pinkish-red or reddish-purple, hairy, arranged parallel to the shoot, with a pressed base and a tilted apex; terminal bud is non-free (with 1-3 nearby small buds), large, cylindrical with a blunt apex. Leaf scar shape is wedge-shaped.

Leaf is five-lobed, medium-sized, green, matte, wrinkled, dense, slightly hairy along the veins on both upper and lower surfaces, with a light woolly covering in the petiole notch area of the upper leaf surface. Leaf blade is folded along the midrib. Main veins are mostly uncolored. In the upper part of the shoot, the midrib may have a barely perceptible anthocyanin coloration. The central lobe is elongated, fairly narrow, triangular, with a pointed, slightly elongated apex, folded along the midrib, additional lobes are well or moderately developed. Side lobes are short, triangular, with sharp apices directed sideways. Angle between their veins is right. Basal lobes are clearly expressed, with raised edges and spread veins. Base of leaf blade is open, heart-shaped, of medium depth. Teeth are small, toothed or toothed-serrated, shallow, blunt, with a clearly defined white "claw". Petiole is medium length, colored, hairy, directed toward the shoot at an acute (60°) angle.

Flowers are large, cup-shaped, whitish-pink, with uneven anthocyanin coloration of individual parts. Sepals are egg-shaped, pointed, hairy, twisted, arranged freely. Petals are whitish, with touching edges, slightly inclined toward the pistil. Pistil is located slightly above the stamens. Ovule has intense brownish-cherry coloration, hairy. Inflorescences are medium length (4.8 cm), longer in the lower part of the shoot, up to 7 cm, medium thickness, with gradual decrease in stem diameter; green, with bronze "tan" coloration, hairy in the upper part, contain 4-7 berries. Inflorescence peduncle is short. Berry stems are very long (1.1-1.7 cm), thin, grayish-green with bronze-purple "tan" coloration, hairy.

Berries are large (1.2-1.4 g), round and oval, black, shiny, with dense skin and medium, closed, non-detaching calyx, with a medium number (32) of fairly large seeds. Flavor is sour-sweet (4.4 points), with strong aroma. Berries are versatile. Chemical composition: dry solids — 19.8%, total sugars — 10.4%, titratable acidity — 3.3%, ascorbic acid — 143.4 mg/100 g, P-active substances — 375.1 mg/100 g, pectins — 1.0%. P-active substances content in leaves — 2965.3 mg/100 g.

Variety is highly winter-hardy, early-fruiting, self-fertile (49.7%), resistant to powdery mildew and bud mite, slightly or moderately affected by leaf spot diseases, consistently productive (2.0-3.0 kg/bush).

Advantages of the variety: high winter hardiness, stable productivity, large berry size, excellent commercial berry quality, good transportability, high-quality processed products retaining fresh berry flavor, strong blackcurrant aroma, resistance to diseases and bud mite.

Disadvantages of the variety: slightly sour taste and berry drop at full maturity.