Very interesting. Where did you get your plants?

The bush looks surprisingly like some 1/2 high blueberry plants that I have.

Nice!
Do you have a close up picture of the fruit, seed etc. I'd be interested to get one, are you propagating it?

Went out for sale shopping and got me a Black Chokeberry, there was no Latin name but it could be Aronia melanocarpa, it has black berries, good clusters and was surprised with much pulp and little seeds, taste was better then chokecherry,...if it survives it could be another good bush fruit.

I was surprised how loaded this little bush is.
Aronia is making big waves lately as being a kind of super health berry, loaded with goodies for the benefit of your health.

Squeeze/smash test,..
As you can see, aronia with tiny little seeds.

i stumbled upon these plants at walmart in Lloydminster,
and never again, glad i picked them up
but i have seen them on the web at some reputable mail order companies (both usa & canada)

any of the dark purple/black fruit are packed with phytonutrients/antioxidants,
like anthocyanins, xanthones, acids, and other important polyphenols
i have one customer that asks for only dark purple fruit products
apparently aronia berries have the highest antioxidant level of any native fruit in america,
coupled with the tiny edible seeds (vitamin B17) make it an intriguing plant,
and its growth appears to be manageable (4'-6' tall for the Nero and Viking varieties)
i will definitely be keeping an eye out for these plants

i just read about seed saving for nanking, i think i will try this for the black nanking next season,
but chinese air layering may also work if started early

i didn't get any shots of the fruit,
i brought them inside, cleaned them and immediately processed them into a special wine for my brother,
and in the rush forgot to take a pic

here is a pic of one in flower this spring

i went out and found some fruit left on the plant
in the pic the black nanking is the fruit on top,
it is compared with a couple of sandcherries on the bottom

the black nankings are a little larger on average,
and have a nice dark purple meat

That looks great!

Thanks for this picture!

Anybody growing the black elderberry?
This one is also a super berry, got a bush but not sure if berries will ripen out.
Back in Switzerland I used to pick it from the edges of forest, my mom made a sirup/jelly.

Here is a link that might be useful: Aronia Health Benefits

Here is what St. Lawrence Nurseries in New York State has on Aronia or Black Chokecherry "Aronia melanocarpa"

They sell 2 varieties: Nero and Viking. Both of these varieties @ 1 to 2 ft high bare root sell for $7.50.

Aronia berries contain the highest known levels of antioxidants of any temperate fruit - 5 times higher than blueberry or cranberry - and also contain strong anticancer compounds.

Nero and Viking are cultivars that produce a fruit that is reputedly used in Russia for pie production, and can also be processed into juice. The berries are astringent when eaten fresh but the taste improves once processed. Will reach a height of 5 ft.

I was hoping that they might have the "Black Nanking" but they only had the regular Nanking.

Aronia is called Chokeberry,..ripening out here could be a problem,..if it will take the winter?

Konrad, last year I almost planted a black elderberry but my nose picked up a distinct muskiness inherent to them. The smell lingers similar to junipers. It was for that reason I walked. Still there is a lot of research on the web about elderberry fruit options. It is worth following up on.

You have my attention intotheark! I have only seen black nanking advertised once and was told getting a sandcherry to set fruit was difficult. I opted for a small plant like the purple leafed sand cherry to finish out my front yard. It has never produced fruit though it is only in its 2nd year. Considering how knawed upon that plant is by rabbits, you would think we had urban beavers! Any fruit would be gobbled up in a hurry as the rabbits keep it from rising above the 3ft mark.

It would be difficult to any significant growth with the purple leafed sand cherry due to winter die back,..got rid of mine over 10 years ago.

My elderberries are still green, ...need another 2 weeks of good weather I think,..could be a kiss good by plant. But,..people growing it in the city most likely bring black ripened fruit to the Devonian Fruit show this weekend.

i have not had any problems with sandcherries fruiting,
except for winter two years ago, voles girdled every single one
ended up with a handful of berries
this year about 3/4's have fully recovered and are fruiting like normal
so we will have plenty for a type of wine/extract i make

we have a sambubcus nigra, but no fruit yet, i'm not sure we will, except maybe exceptional years
if you do get those elderberries to ripen i can give you a recipe to make 'flu killer'
it is a simple dried elderberry & vodka soak, but it will even attack bird flu, as well as regular flus
'sambucol' you can buy in the store is a black elderberry product

Think you're talking about Western Sandcherry, Prunus besseyi, yes, no problem with these, Prunus x cistena, [purple leaf] is not hardy for zone 3.

Sambubcus nigra could be difficult to fruit, I have a hardier, Sambucus canadensis Johns [in picture] it's self fruitful and hardiest of all.

At the growers meeting today,..as I suspected, ripe berries grown in Edmonton, he say's when heaving a cold, a handful of these, [raw] and in two day's it's over.

This is Aronia Viking, grafted onto Hawthorn this spring, looks like it's ripening.

I have grown Aronia for many years and have only been able to harvest a couple of years.
The 2 I have are Autumn Magic and Autumn Flame. I will check which has the larger fruit as one of them is small and slightly dry while the other can be up to 1/2 inch on a good year. They make a mild flavored jelly. Also they are in the same family as Saskatoon and Roses thus the small seeds.
Little Tree Nursery in Martensville SK sells a plant with a good sized fruit. As far as I know it is an un-named selection. Mine have become part of a natural flower bed and have strong competition from other trees and shrubs so I think they would do better a deliberate field production planting.
Clayton near Saskatoon

Thank you Clayton!
I contacted them, they sell seedlings from seeds collected at
Parterson Botanical Garden in Saskatoon. [perhaps you can check them out and get some seeds if it looks promising]

Mine is also Autumn Magic, fruit size is pretty good,.. in Google I found your old thread, Clayton,..forgot all about it, looks like you had a nice little harvest.

This black elderberry survived several light frost,..picked some bunches, I found them fairly good taste when fresh, only about 1/3 ripened up. The first couple of bunches I harvested about 10 day's ago.