We have three species of
chokeberries
usually available:
Red chokeberries, (Aronia arbutifolia); are the most decorative of the three, the berries are bright red, about 7mm and ready mid - late autumn.
The black chokeberry, (Aronia melanocarpa); growing to 1 - 1.5 m with glossy black berries in late summer of about 8 - 10 mm.
The purple chokeberry, (Aronia prunifolia); which can get up to 2 m in a sheltered spot with dark purple berries of about 6 - 8 mm ripe early - late autumn.
None require any fancy pruning, are happy in any soil, in sun or part shade, with lovely white flowers in the spring and colourful leaves in the autumn.
The berries need to be fully ripe before being edible, they will hang on the bushes for a while with the purple and red being improved by frost. Native people in the US dry them for winter use and we have made crumbles and jelly with the blacks at the end of the summer.