Alpine Currant vs Ben Sarek Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Alpine Currant vs Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ribes nigrum Ben Sarek

Ribes alpinum

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Ben Sarek Black Currant
Alpine Currant

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.

Alpine Currant is a great shrub to plant along sidewalks, near building or at your property boundary as a hedge or accent species. It is widely used by commercial landscapers in parking lots and near buildings because of its hardiness, attractiveness, and pollution tolerance.

While Alpine Currant produces edible berries, they are not palatable.

Ben Sarek Black Currant Quick Facts

Alpine Currant Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 2a
Height: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Height: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Spread: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Spread: 1.5 m (5 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: any
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: low
Maintenance: medium


Foliage: aromatic when crushed
Foliage: glossy green
Flowers: greenish-yellow
Flowers: greenish yellow and fragrant
Bloom time: early to mid spring
Berries: black currants, edible
Berries: small, bright red
Flavor: sweet-tart
Harvest: mid-summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Other Names: ben sarek blackcurrant
Other Names: mountain currant