Red Elderberry vs Ben Sarek Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Red Elderberry vs Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ribes nigrum Ben Sarek

Sambucus racemosa

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2025)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Ben Sarek Black Currant
Red Elderberry

Ben Sarek Black Currant is a compact, high-yielding Black Currant cultivar, making it ideal for smaller gardens and easy berry picking. The large clusters of flavourful, sweet-tart berries ripen in mid-summer and are perfect for fresh eating, preserves, baked goods, and liqueurs. Plants may start producing some berries after two years, reaching full production in about four to five.

Developed by the Scottish Crop Research Institute, Ben Sarek Black Currant is resistant to powdery mildew and moderately resistant to white pine blister rust. It is self-fertile, meaning it does not require cross-pollination from another variety to produce fruit.

Red Elderberry is an attractive, medium-sized deciduous shrub.

It produces clusters of white flowers in the spring and bright red berry-like drupes, which provide beautiful contrast against its coarse, textured green foliage.

Red Elder can be pruned as a small single or multi-stemmed tree.

Ben Sarek Black Currant Quick Facts

Red Elderberry Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 2a
Height: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Height: 4 m (13 ft)
Spread: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Spread: 3 m (10 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: medium
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: compact, dense, rounded
Spreading: layering - low
Suckering: none
Maintenance: medium


Toxicity: toxic to humans
Foliage: aromatic when crushed
Flowers: greenish-yellow
Flowers: white
Bloom time: early to mid spring
Berries: black currants, edible
Berries: bright red berries
Flavor: sweet-tart
Harvest: mid-summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, PE
Other Names: ben sarek blackcurrant
Other Names: red elder