Red Currant vs Northern Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Red Currant vs Northern Black Currant

Ribes hudsonianum

Ribes rubrum

CUSTOM GROW

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Northern Black Currant
Red Currant

Northern Black Currant is a native deciduous shrub found across Canada and the northern United States. Dark purple to black berries that ripen in summer and provide food for wildlife and humans. Fragrant yellow-green flowers that attract a wide variety of pollinators.
This shrub is well adapted to moist soils and can even survive periods of flooding. It has an interesting bronze colour in fall.

Red Currant is a deciduous shrub native to western Europe. It features five-lobed, maple-like leaves, and bright red berries that can be used in jams, sauces, and fresh eating.

Although this shrub is self-fertile, it will be more productive if another pollinator is present. For year over year high yields, ensure you fertilize (bone meal), prune, and mulch your Red Currant shrub.

Northern Black Currant Quick Facts

Red Currant Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.9 m (3 ft)
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Spread: 1.2 m (4 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: medium
Growth rate: fast
Life span: medium
Life span: medium
Growth form: upright to prostrate, thicket-forming
Spreading: seeds - low, layering - low
Suckering: none
Maintenance: medium
Maintenance: medium


Flowers: small white, in clusters
Bloom time: spring to early summer
Berries: black, edible
Flavor: bitter
Harvest: mid to late summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, YT, NT
Other Names: hudson bay currant, stinking currant, western black currant, wild black currant