Ben Sarek Black Currant

Ben Sarek was bred by the Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI) and released in 1983, holding US Plant Patent #9,889. It is genuinely notable for an unusually compact growth habit — rarely exceeding about one meter in height — making it well suited to high-density planting on pick-your-own farms as well as small home gardens, a real, documented practical advantage over larger black currant varieties. It shows real frost tolerance, particularly during the vulnerable blossom period, and is partially self-fertile, though growers report higher yields when a second Ribes nigrum variety is planted nearby for cross-pollination. Like other black currants, it belongs to the species most susceptible to white pine blister rust, which is why black currants specifically faced tighter restrictions than red currants or gooseberries during the decades of US Ribes bans.