Witch Hazel vs Ben Sarek Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Witch Hazel vs Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ribes nigrum Ben Sarek

Hamamelis virginiana

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Ben Sarek Black Currant
Witch Hazel

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.

Witch Hazel is a deciduous shrub, or small tree, with a short trunk, bearing numerous spreading, crooked branches.

The seeds grow in a long, wooden pod with two to four seeds per pod. Upon ripening, the pods burst, firing the seeds up to 30km an hour.

The leaf and bark extract of Witch Hazel has been used as a remedy to common ailments such as inflammation, bruises and much more for many centuries.

Ben Sarek Black Currant Quick Facts

Witch Hazel Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Height: 6 m (20 ft)
Spread: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Spread: 3 m (10 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
Moisture: normal
Moisture: wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: slow
Life span: short
Life span: long
Growth form: compact, dense, rounded
Spreading: layering - low
Suckering: medium
Maintenance: medium


Foliage: aromatic when crushed
Flowers: greenish-yellow
Bloom time: early to mid spring
Berries: black currants, edible
Flavor: sweet-tart
Harvest: mid-summer
Seeds: seeds ejected to a distance of up to 30 ft
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: ON, QC, NS, NB, PE
Other Names: ben sarek blackcurrant