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coast black gooseberry, coastal black gooseberry, spreading gooseberry, straggly currant, straggly gooseberry, wild black gooseberry

squaw currant, stink currant, wax currant, white currant

Habit Plants 1–3 m. Stems erect to spreading, ± pubescent throughout; spines at nodes absent or 1–3, 5–20 mm; prickles on internodes absent or sparse. Plants 0.2–2 m. Stems spreading or arching to erect, puberulent, sparsely to copiously stipitate-glandular; spines at nodes absent; prickles on internodes absent.
Leaves

petiole 1–3 cm, pilose with glandular and eglandular hairs, some plumose hairs at base;

blade roundish to nearly reniform, 3- (or 5-)lobed, cleft 1/2 to midrib, proximal segments again shallowly cleft into 2 unequal lobes, 2–3.5 cm, base rounded to cordate, surfaces pubescent abaxially, subglabrous or finely pubescent adaxially, lobes cuneate, margins prominently crenate-serrate, apex rounded.

petiole (0.3–) 0.6–1.2(–2.8) cm, glabrous or finely to copiously pubescent;

blade almost reniform to broadly cuneate-flabellate, 3–5(–7)-lobed, shallowly cleft, (0.5–) 1–2(–4) cm, base cordate to truncate, surfaces glabrous or copiously pubescent, sparsely stipitate-glandular to downy to conspicuously stipitate-glandular and sessile-glandular, particularly noticeable on margins, lobes rounded, margins coarsely crenate-dentate, apex obtuse.

Inflorescences

pendent, solitary flowers or 2–4-flowered racemes, 2–4 cm, axis glabrous or pilose, flowers evenly spaced.

pendent, solitary flowers or 2–8(–9)-flowered racemes, 1–3 cm, axis finely pubescent, ± sticky with short-stalked to subsessile glands, flowers tightly clustered at end of peduncle.

Pedicels

not jointed, 3–12 mm, glabrous or pilose;

bracts oval, 1–2 mm, glabrous or ciliate with stiff hairs and glands.

jointed, (0.4–)1–2.2(–3.4) mm, puberulent;

bracts flabellate or ovate to obovate, 3–7(–8.8) mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular.

Flowers

hypanthium greenish or purplish, obconic, 1.5–3.5 mm, glabrous or copiously pubescent;

sepals not overlapping, spreading-reflexed, red or reddish or purplish green, narrowly oblong-deltate, 3.4–6 mm;

petals distally nearly connivent to overlapping, erect, white or pink to red, cuneate-lunate to obovate, not conspicuously revolute or inrolled, 1.2–3 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens 2.5–3.5 times as long as petals;

filaments linear, 3.5–7 mm, glabrous;

anthers cream, oval, 1 mm, apex rounded;

ovary glabrous;

styles connate ca. 1/2 their lengths, 5–11 mm, copiously pilose-villous in proximal 3/4.

hypanthium white to greenish white with pink tinge, or pinkish white, narrowly tubular, tube widest at base and near throat, 5–9(–9.4) mm, densely hairy and scattered stipitate-glandular abaxially, glabrous adaxially;

sepals not overlapping, spreading-recurved, greenish white to white or faintly to strongly pinkish tinged, deltate-ovate, 1–3.2 mm;

petals connivent, erect, white to pink, orbiculate or flabellate, not conspicuously revolute or inrolled, 1–2.1 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens shorter than petals, (inserted below petals and completely included in hypanthium tube);

filaments linear, 0.5–1.6 mm, glabrous;

anthers pale cream-yellow to yellow, oval, 0.6–1.2 mm, apex with small, cup-shaped gland;

ovary glabrous or hairy or sparsely to densely pubescent;

styles connate nearly to stigmas, 7.5–11.5 mm, proximally hairy or glabrous.

Berries

palatable, purplish black, subglobose, 6–12 mm, glabrous.

tasteless, dull to bright red or orange-red, ovoid, 5–12 mm, sparsely glandular to glandular.

2n

= 16.

= 16.

Ribes divaricatum

Ribes cereum

Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR; WA; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; OK; OR; SD; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

Hybrids between Ribes divaricatum and R. niveum and R. divaricatum and R. lobbii have been propagated for the horticultural trade.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Ribes cereum has a notably spicy odor. The bright green style, which becomes brown with age, is striking.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Key
1. Petals 1.2-1.7 mm, white; styles 5-7 mm; fila- ments 3.5-4.7(-5) mm.
var. pubiflorum
1. Petals 2-3 mm, white or pink to red; styles 8-11 mm; filaments 4.5-7 mm
→ 2
2. Petals white; hypanthia 1.7-2.5 mm.
var. divaricatum
2. Petals pink to red; hypanthia 2.8-3.5 mm.
var. parishii
1. Bracts truncate to broadly rounded apically; sepals pubescent and stipitate-glandular.
var. cereum
1. Bracts acute apically; sepals glabrous or sparsely to densely pubescent, not stipitate-glandular.
var. colubrinum
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 38. FNA vol. 8, p. 22.
Parent taxa Grossulariaceae > Ribes Grossulariaceae > Ribes
Sibling taxa
R. acerifolium, R. amarum, R. americanum, R. aureum, R. binominatum, R. bracteosum, R. californicum, R. canthariforme, R. cereum, R. curvatum, R. cynosbati, R. diacanthum, R. echinellum, R. erythrocarpum, R. glandulosum, R. hirtellum, R. hudsonianum, R. indecorum, R. inerme, R. lacustre, R. lasianthum, R. laxiflorum, R. leptanthum, R. lobbii, R. malvaceum, R. marshallii, R. menziesii, R. mescalerium, R. missouriense, R. montigenum, R. nevadaense, R. nigrum, R. niveum, R. oxyacanthoides, R. pinetorum, R. quercetorum, R. roezlii, R. rotundifolium, R. rubrum, R. sanguineum, R. sericeum, R. speciosum, R. thacherianum, R. triste, R. tularense, R. uva-crispa, R. velutinum, R. viburnifolium, R. victoris, R. viscosissimum, R. watsonianum, R. wolfii
R. acerifolium, R. amarum, R. americanum, R. aureum, R. binominatum, R. bracteosum, R. californicum, R. canthariforme, R. curvatum, R. cynosbati, R. diacanthum, R. divaricatum, R. echinellum, R. erythrocarpum, R. glandulosum, R. hirtellum, R. hudsonianum, R. indecorum, R. inerme, R. lacustre, R. lasianthum, R. laxiflorum, R. leptanthum, R. lobbii, R. malvaceum, R. marshallii, R. menziesii, R. mescalerium, R. missouriense, R. montigenum, R. nevadaense, R. nigrum, R. niveum, R. oxyacanthoides, R. pinetorum, R. quercetorum, R. roezlii, R. rotundifolium, R. rubrum, R. sanguineum, R. sericeum, R. speciosum, R. thacherianum, R. triste, R. tularense, R. uva-crispa, R. velutinum, R. viburnifolium, R. victoris, R. viscosissimum, R. watsonianum, R. wolfii
Subordinate taxa
R. divaricatum var. divaricatum, R. divaricatum var. parishii, R. divaricatum var. pubiflorum
R. cereum var. cereum, R. cereum var. colubrinum
Synonyms Grossularia divaricata
Name authority Douglas: Trans. Hort. Soc. London 7: 515. 1830 , Douglas: Trans. Hort. Soc. London 7: 512. (1830)
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