Mountain Huckleberry vs Ben Sarek Black Currant - TreeTime.ca

Mountain Huckleberry vs Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ribes nigrum Ben Sarek

Vaccinium membranaceum

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2025)

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Ben Sarek Black Currant
Mountain Huckleberry

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.

Mountain Huckleberry is a small shrub known for its tart to sweet berries. The berries range from purple-black to red-black, and can be eaten fresh or used in jams and syrups. It is a plant native to Alberta and the berries are frequently enjoyed by both people and wildlife.

In traditional Indigenous fire management practices, berry patches were burned after harvest. This would reduce the invasion of other plants allowing the Mountain Huckleberry to thrive. Its foliage has low flammability and can survive low severity fires, and even if destroyed they regrow from the roots.

Note: Mountain Huckleberry requires specific soil conditions. They need moist, well-drained, acidic soil with a pH around 5.5.

Ben Sarek Black Currant Quick Facts

Mountain Huckleberry Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 5a
Height: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Height: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Spread: 1.1 m (4 ft)
Spread: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal
Moisture: any
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: medium
Life span: short
Life span: short
Growth form: compact, dense, rounded
Spreading: layering - low
Suckering: high
Maintenance: medium


Foliage: aromatic when crushed
Flowers: greenish-yellow
Bloom time: early to mid spring
Berries: black currants, edible
Berries: dark purple
Flavor: sweet-tart
Flavor: sweet, acidic
Harvest: mid-summer
Harvest: mid to late summer
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, ON, YT, NT
Other Names: ben sarek blackcurrant
Other Names: big huckleberry, black huckleberry, tall bilberry, thinleaf huckleberry