European vs American black currant seeds

Black Currant (Ribes nigrum) seed was collected locally from healthy, heavily producing Ben series cultivar bushes. Seedlings will have natural variation but should retain many traits of the seed parents.

The bushes produce large black fruit about one half inch across. The strongly flavoured berries are high in vitamin C and are used fresh, in juice, and in preserves.

Wild American Black Currant (Ribes americanum) is a native berry shrub with fruit that ripens around Oak Summit Nursery in early August. Its flavour is distinct from cultivated black currants, and the berries also feed birds and small mammals.

This seed was collected locally in Manitoba. The shrubs have lobed leaves and yellow green spring flowers and often grow near wetlands, streams, and woodland edges.