Blackcurrant variety "Dar Altai" is a late-ripening universal variety bred at the M.A. Lisavenko Research Institute of Horticulture and Vegetable Growing (NIISS) by crossing the Black Giant of Missouri and Gift to Ariadne varieties. Bushes are medium-sized, moderately spreading, with a medium-density canopy, reaching a height of about 2 meters. Canes are thin, straight, brown in color, non-hairy and matte. Leaves are small, three- and five-lobed, leathery, smooth and matte, without hairiness, with sharp short teeth and a straight base. Flowers are yellow, tubular, of medium and large size.
Berries are oval in shape, black in color, with an average weight of about 1-2 grams, a dense skin of medium thickness and a closed calyx. The taste of the berries is acid-sweet, refreshing, with a pleasant aroma. The biochemical composition includes 12.3-12.6% sugars, 2.7% acids, 47.4 mg% of vitamin C and 6.4 mg% of carotene. Berries are universal in application: suitable for fresh consumption, as well as processing into jam, jelly, compote, juice, drying and freezing. The tasting score of fresh berries is 4.2 points, and processed products — up to 4.6 points.
The variety is distinguished by high winter hardiness, drought and heat resistance, as well as resistance to most diseases and pests, except for weak infestation by gall aphids. Yield is average — about 14.4 tons per hectare (4.3 kg per bush), maximum reaching 15 tons per hectare. Among the advantages of the variety are high yield, excellent taste and biochemical indicators of berries, as well as suitability for mechanized harvesting.
