The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

canyon gooseberry, coast prickly gooseberry, gooseberry

Mount Adams gooseberry, spiny gooseberry, spring gooseberry, wastson gooseberry, Watson gooseberry, Watson's gooseberry

Habit Plants 1–2 m. Stems erect, pubescent, glandular-bristly; spines at nodes mostly 3, 10–15(–20) mm; prickles on internodes dense. Plants 1–2 m. Stems ascending to erect, copiously grayish-hairy and abundantly stipitate-glandular, very slightly if at all bristly; spines at nodes 1 or 3, 3–7(–10) mm; prickles on internodes absent.
Leaves

petiole 1–2.5 cm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

blade broadly ovate, 3–5-lobed, cleft less than 1/2 to midrib, 1.5–2.5 cm, base semitruncate or slightly cordate, surfaces abaxially pubescent and sessile- or stipitate-glandular, adaxially glabrous or sparsely pubescent, lobes cuneate-rounded, margins crenate-dentate, apex rounded.

petiole 2–4 cm, puberulent to pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

blade broadly triangular, 3–5-lobed, cleft less than 1/2 to midrib, again 2–5 cleft, 2–5 cm, base truncate or cordate, surfaces thickly puberulent to pubescent, stipitate-glandular, lobes broad, rounded, margins coarsely crenate-denticulate, apex rounded.

Inflorescences

pendent, solitary flowers or 2-flowered racemes, 2–4 cm, axis short-pubescent, glandular.

pendent, solitary flowers or 2(–3)-flowered racemes, 2–4 cm, axis pubescent, stipitate-glandular.

Pedicels

not jointed, 3–6 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

bracts broadly ovate, 3–5 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular.

not jointed, 2–3 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

bracts deltate, 2–3 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular.

Flowers

hypanthium crimson, conic, 2.5–3.5 mm (1/4–1/3 as long as sepals), white-pilose, with red, stalked glands and red bristles;

sepals not overlapping, reflexed, reddish purple or greenish purple, oblong-lanceolate, 7–11 mm;

petals connivent, erect, white or pinkish to yellow, broadly flabellate-cuneate, often with inrolled margins, 3–4 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens 1.5–1.8 times as long as petals;

filaments linear, 3–5 mm, glabrous;

anthers white or tan, lanceolate-sagittate, 2.5 mm, apex acute, mucronate;

ovary somewhat pubescent and strongly purplish glandular-bristly with longer glandless bristles among gland-tipped hairs;

styles connate to middle, 6–8 mm, glabrous.

hypanthium greenish or with some reddish tinge, tubular-campanulate, 2.5–3 mm, finely pilose, sparingly glandular;

sepals not overlapping, reflexed, cream suffused with pink, narrowly oblong, 5.5–9 mm;

petals connivent, erect, white, pinkish proximally, oblong, not conspicuously revolute or inrolled, 3.5–4 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens as long as or slightly longer than petals;

filaments linear, 2–3 mm, glabrous;

anthers white, oblong, 0.8–1.2 mm, apex rounded;

ovary densely glandular-bristly;

styles connate 3/4 their lengths, 6 mm, glabrous.

Berries

not palatable, reddish purple, ellipsoid-globose, 10–13 mm, pubescent, glandular-bristly.

palatability not known, reddish, subglobose, 10 mm, densely yellowish-spiny.

Ribes menziesii

Ribes watsonianum

Phenology Flowering Feb–May. Flowering May–Jul.
Habitat Ravines, wooded canyon slopes Canyons, ridges
Elevation 0-1800 m (0-5900 ft) 1300-2200 m (4300-7200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; OR
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
OR; WA; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties of Ribes menziesii that have been recognized in the past include: var. hystrix, which occurs in the inner South Coast Ranges, is not particularly aromatic, has leaves glandular abaxially, filament lengths equal to the petals, and berries with glandular and nonglandular hairs; var. ixoderme, which occurs in the Sierra Nevada foothills, is aromatic, has leaves glandular abaxially, filament lengths longer than petals, and berries with glandular and nonglandular hairs; var. leptosmum, which occurs in the outer North Coast Ranges and San Francisco Bay area, is not particularly fragrant, has filament lengths longer than petals, and berries densely covered with gland-tipped bristles and without nonglandular hairs; var. senile, which occurs in the southwestern part of the San Francisco Bay area, is not particularly fragrant, has leaves with relatively few glands abaxially, filament lengths 1.5 times the petals, and berries with dense, soft, white hairs and gland-tipped bristles. M. R. Mesler and J. O. Sawyer Jr. (1993) concluded that the differences are not sufficient for recognizing these taxa.

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

Ribes watsonianum occurs in the Cascade Range of Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia, and in Alberta. Analysis of combined datasets of ITS, ETS, psbA-trnH, and chloroplast restriction sites placed R. watsonianum as sister to sect. Grossularia (L. M. Schultheis and M. J. Donoghue 2004).

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

Source FNA vol. 8, p. 32. FNA vol. 8, p. 34.
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. 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. 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. cereum, 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. wolfii
Synonyms Grossularia hystrix, Grossularia leptosma, Grossularia menziesii, Grossularia senilis, R. menziesii var. hystrix, R. menziesii var. ixoderme, R. menziesii var. leptosmum, R. menziesii var. senile Grossularia watsoniana
Name authority Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 2: 732. 1813 , Koehne: Deut. Dendrol., 197. 1893 ,
Web links