Edible Berry Bushes And Trees With Black Fruit

Trees and shrubs are wonderful. Trees and shrubs that produce fruit are even better, and there are many types of edible berries. But which trees and shrubs bear black fruit? The only common types of black fruit are berries, like blackberries, black currants, and even black chokeberries. 

If you are interested in growing these berries in your backyard, read on for information about small trees and shrubs with black berries.

Blackberry Bush

The best-known bush bearing black berries is the typical blackberry bush. It’s a bush that many of us have had growing wild in our backyards at one time or another. 

If you don’t have a blackberry patch yet, it’s as easy to grow as raspberries and each cane offers an abundant harvest. You can pick enough for dessert every day during the entire season. Pick between erect, semi-erect or trailing bushes.

Black Currants

Americans are more familiar with blackberries, but the black currant shrub is another bush with black berries. Black currants are perennial fruit-bearing shrubs that are native to and common in central and northern Europe. They have similarities to both blueberries and blackberries.

The black currant shrub produces juicy black currants. These are delicious and lovely berries that are shaped like blueberries and their color is an intense, midnight blue. This is part of the magic of black currants, as they hang in large, enticing clumps on the currant canes in July. Another magical element is the concentrated-blackberry flavor of these juicy berries.

A Small Tree with Black Berries

Calling the elderberry a tree is a bit of an exaggeration. It only grows to 10 feet (3.3m.) tall, but it offers several seasons of delight. In spring, look for showy clusters of fragrant, white flowers that develop over summer into clusters of berries, somewhere on the scale between dark purple and black. 

Elderberries are used to make delectable wine, jellies and jams. Sometimes gardeners just leave all the fruit for wildlife to consume over winter. In winter, this deciduous shrub loses its leaves.

Bigger Tree with Black Berries

Maybe you are looking for a majestic shade tree that also produces black berries. Check out the black mulberry tree with its delicious and abundant harvest. They are easy to grow in a large backyard, and the fruit is packed with flavor. 

While the black mulberry isn’t cultivated to the same extent as cherry or apple trees, it does produce bountiful harvests of small blackberry-like berries. Mulberry fruit is excellent in jams and pies. The trees are hardy to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 4 and should be grown in rich soil in full sun.