Jahns Prairie Gooseberry vs Bristly Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Jahns Prairie Gooseberry vs Bristly Black Currant

Ribes oxyacanthoides Jahns Prairie

Ribes lacustre

CUSTOM GROW

CUSTOM GROW

Jahns Prairie Gooseberry
Bristly Black Currant

Jahns Prairie Gooseberry produces large, delicious red fruit.

Found in the Red Deer River valley by Dr. Otto Jahn in 1984. This cultivar was found to resist insects and disease, tolerate frost, and produce high quality fruit.

Bristly Black Currant is a native deciduous shrub that grows in moist forests, swamps, and riparian areas. In summer, it produces clusters of dark purple to black berries that provide food for wildlife, while its reddish-purple flowers attract pollinators. The berries are technically edible and enjoyed by some, but many find them unpleasant and bitter.

Thriving in moist soils and shaded locations, Bristly Black Currant helps stabilize soil and supports diverse habitats. It is valuable for conservation plantings, wetland restoration, riparian buffers, and naturalization projects.

Note: When crushed, the berries are known to release an offensive odour.

Jahns Prairie Gooseberry Quick Facts

Bristly Black Currant Quick Facts

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


Toxicity: prickles may cause an allergic reaction
Fall colour: yellow
Bark: reddish brown with prickles
Flowers: small maroon-green clusters
Bloom time: spring to early summer
Berries: red-pink berries
Berries: dark purple with hairs, edible
Flavor: tart, unpleasant
Harvest: mid to late July
Harvest: mid to late summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, YT, NT, PE
Other Names: black gooseberry, black swamp gooseberry, bristly black gooseberry, bristly currant, bristly swamp currant, prickly currant