Currant Rita

Mid-season ripening variety, developed at the Siberian Institute of Horticulture named after M.A. Lisavenko from crossing the varieties Sеянец Golubki and Lepaan Musta. Authors: Z.S. Zotova, I.P. Kalinina, N.I. Nazaryuk, M.A. Pershina, I.L. Teslya, V.S. Shevchunova. Included in the State Register of Varieties approved for use in the Volga-Vyatka and West Siberian regions since 2001.

Bush is strong-growing, compact, dense. Growing shoots are thin, matte, green, straight, without hairs, woody — brown. Buds of medium size, egg-shaped, blunt, purplish-brown, deviated, solitary, apical — free.

Leaf five-lobed, small to medium, dark green, shiny, without hairs, wrinkled, leathery, blade slightly concave. Lobes are acute and broad. Additional protrusions are present on the middle lobe. Lateral

lobes directed sideways, angle between their mid-veins obtuse. Basal lobes are well developed, veins directed toward the petiole. Base of the leaf has a notch formed by overlapping lobe edges. Teeth are short, blunt, with a clearly defined "tip". Petiole is medium length and thickness, without hairs, green, positioned at 45° angle to the shoot.

Flowers large, cup-shaped, sepals light pink, not closed, slightly reflexed. Stigma level with anthers. Inflorescences medium length (up to 6.5 cm), dense, hanging, axis thick, green, with "sunburn", curved.

Berries very large (1.7-4.5 g), round, black, matte, with medium seed count, medium skin, dry detachment, simultaneous ripening, good transportability. Peduncle long and thin, calyx closed and small. Flavor sour-sweet, good. Berries of universal use. Chemical composition: dry matter — 10.9-14.5%, total sugars — 6.1-11.0%, titratable acidity — 0.7-3.1%, ascorbic acid — 214.5 mg/100 g, pectic substances (on fresh weight) — 0.9-2.2%.

Variety is winter-hardy, drought-tolerant, self-fertile, early-bearing, highly resistant to powdery mildew (0.2 points) and gall mite (0 points), anthracnose and septoria (1.0 points), weakly damaged by bud mites (2.0 points), average yield 11.6 t/ha (3.5 kg/plant), maximum — 15.0 t/ha.

Advantages of the variety: high yield, early bearing, large fruit size, high resistance to powdery mildew and gall mite.

Disadvantages of the variety: insufficient resistance to bud mites.