Titania Black Currant (Bundle of 2)

Ripe Titania black currants hanging on the bush

Titania Black Currant (Bundle of 2) | Spring 2027

$54.99

Reliable shipping

Flexible returns

Pollination Self-fertile

Bloom group 4 of 7 (Mid)

Currant & Gooseberry Pollination Chart

Ripening

Will it finish before your first hard freeze?

Check it on the Ripening Map (opens in a new tab)

Disease resistanceResists 3 of 3

Leaf spot : Resistant, 4 of 5
Powdery mildew : Resistant, 4 of 5
White pine blister rust : Highly resistant, 5 of 5

Scored 1 to 5. Higher resists better, and ? means no published data yet.

See it on our berry disease chart (opens in a new tab)

At a glance: Titania Black Currant is a currant shrub rated hardy to zone 3 from other growers' reports (winters to -40°F), self-fertile, so one plant can crop, and it ripens about Jul 15 to Jul 30 in Missoula (our Missoula estimate).

Hardy to	Zone 3 to 7. A bare number means the whole of zone 3, colder half included (winters to -40°F). Find your zone with our cold hardiness calculator.
Chill hours	About 1,100 hours (700 to 1,600). Our estimate. No published figure exists for this variety yet. Montana winters give it plenty. In milder climates, make sure your winters average at least this much. Check your chill hours or see our sources.
Pollination	Self-Fertile. Bloom group 4 of 7 (mid), very early spring here. Titania sets fruit on its own, but it crops best with a different black currant nearby, such as Consort. Bloom group is our estimate from the variety's origin and relatives. Currant & Gooseberry Pollination Chart.
Ripens	About Jul 15 to Jul 30 in Missoula (a Missoula estimate from published sources). Real years swing about a week either way. See the date for your town.
Spacing	Plant 4 to 5 ft apart.
Good for	Jams and jellies (8/10), juice and sweet cider (8/10), sauce and butter (8/10), canning and freezing (7/10), brandy and liqueurs (6/10), fresh eating (6/10). Scores are our 1 to 10 ratings, but we're still new to this one, so they lean on published descriptions and other growers rather than our own harvests. 8 and up makes our Best Of lists.
Deer	Sometimes damaged by deer.
What you get	Bare root, 1-2 ft. Shipped or picked up in Missoula in spring, roots wrapped in moist sawdust. Guaranteed to bud out.

This is our first year growing Titania, so everything below is secondhand until we get more long-term data from our own mother plants.

Overview

Titania is a Swedish black currant with big berries, a milder flavor than most black currants, and good mildew resistance. It was one of the top performers in North Dakota's black currant trials.

Origin and History

It was bred by Pal Tamas at Tollarp, Sweden, from a cross made in 1969 and selected in 1974, and it was introduced in the 1980s. Its parents are the Russian variety Altajskaja Desertnaja and a seedling of Consort and Kajaanin Musta.

Fruit and Uses

The berries are large, and St. Lawrence Nurseries describes the flavor as "a bit milder than other cultivars, but with typical black currant flavor." In Montana State's variety trials, Titania had the highest sugar of the black currants tested, though its berries were smaller than those of the newer Canadian varieties in the trial. It ripens in midsummer. NDSU found the fruit closest to the ground ripens first and can start dropping before the top is ripe, so plan on picking twice. It's mostly used for juice and jam.

Growth Habit and Spacing

This is a big, vigorous bush, up to about 6 feet according to the University of Minnesota, and the canes tend to bend toward the ground under a heavy crop. Space plants about 4 to 5 feet apart for easy picking and airflow. It bears early, with a full harvest by about the third year. At NDSU's Carrington station it averaged 4.7 pounds per plant over six years and was recommended for North Dakota. Most sources rate it resistant to powdery mildew.

Pollination

Titania is self-fertile, so one plant will fruit on its own.

Cold Hardiness

Titania is rated zone 3 by most nurseries, and One Green World lists it hardy to -40F. The University of Minnesota rates its hardiness excellent to very good. We've listed it at zone 3.

A note on white pine blister rust: Titania carries the Cr gene, which was bred in for immunity to blister rust. But blister rust has since been reported on Titania in Connecticut, and UMass Extension says a new strain in the Northeast can overcome that immunity. So it's resistant, but not immune.

Shipping restrictions: white pine blister rust quarantine

Black currants (Ribes nigrum and its hybrids) are an alternate host for white pine blister rust. We cannot ship this plant to Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Virginia, or West Virginia, where its sale or importation is prohibited by state law.

Permit or local restrictions also apply in: Michigan and New Jersey (state permit required) and New York (prohibited outside designated fruiting-currant districts unless the cultivar is certified rust-resistant). Several other states restrict planting only within specific counties or townships.

Orders placed to a prohibited state will be cancelled and refunded.

Photo credit: USDA-ARS National Plant Germplasm System, National Clonal Germplasm Repository, Corvallis, Oregon, accession PI 652993. Public domain (U.S. government work).

Questions we get about Titania Black Currant

Does Titania Black Currant need a pollenizer?

No. Titania Black Currant is self-fertile, so a single plant can set fruit, but it crops best with a different black currant nearby, such as Consort.

How cold hardy is Titania Black Currant?

We list Titania Black Currant at zone 3, which means winters down to about -40°F. That comes from One Green World's -40°F rating and most nurseries' zone 3, not from our own winters yet. We'll update it once our own plants have been through some Montana winters.

How many chill hours does Titania Black Currant need?

About 1,100 hours of winter chill (we count hours at or below 45°F), likely somewhere between 700 and 1,600. Nobody has published a chill figure for it, so that's our estimate from its relatives and origin. Our chill hours guide has a calculator for your winters, and our research page lists the sources.

When does Titania Black Currant ripen?

About Jul 15 to Jul 30 in Missoula, Montana (an estimate built from published sources and our climate). Warmer places run earlier and cooler places later; our ripening map converts the date to your town.

What is Titania Black Currant good for?

Our top use scores for Titania Black Currant are jams and jellies (8/10), juice and sweet cider (8/10), sauce and butter (8/10), canning and freezing (7/10). Since we're still new to it, those scores lean on published descriptions and trial results rather than our own harvests. Anything scored 8 or higher makes our Best Of lists.

Is Titania Black Currant disease resistant?

Yes. It's highly resistant to white pine blister rust, and resistant to leaf spot and powdery mildew. Our berry disease resistance chart has every rating, the notes and the sources.

Will deer eat Titania Black Currant?

Sometimes. Deer browse Titania Black Currant now and then, so protect young plants where deer pressure is high.

What arrives, and when does Titania Black Currant ship?

Two dormant bare-root plants, roots wrapped in moist sawdust with a vapor barrier, shipped or picked up in Missoula in spring. Sizes offered: 1-2 ft. We guarantee our plants bud out.