Labrador Tea vs Ben Sarek Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Labrador Tea vs Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ribes nigrum Ben Sarek

Rhododendron groenlandicum (Ledum groenlandicum)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Ben Sarek Black Currant
Labrador Tea

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.

Labrador Tea is slow-growing evergreen shrub native to the boreal forests of Canada.

It thrives in wet, swampy conditions.

Labrador Tea has narrow, leathery, dark green leaves, topped by a cluster of white flowers in the spring. It is a perfect ornamental shrub for boggy, wet areas of your property.

Ben Sarek Black Currant Quick Facts

Labrador Tea Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 1a
Height: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Height: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: any
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: slow
Life span: short
Life span: short
Growth form: compact, dense, rounded
Spreading: layering - low
Suckering: none
Maintenance: medium


Toxicity: slightly toxic if ingested
Foliage: aromatic when crushed
Foliage: leathery, orange undersides, evergreen
Fall colour: rust orange
Flowers: greenish-yellow
Flowers: white, fragrant
Bloom time: early to mid spring
Berries: black currants, edible
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, NT, NU, PE
Other Names: ben sarek blackcurrant