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blood currant, flowering currant, red currant, red-flowering currant, redflower currant, winter currant

buffalo currant, clove currant, gadellier doré, golden currant, Missouri currant

Habit Plants 1–4 m. Stems erect, finely pubescent, stipitate-glandular; spines at nodes absent; prickles on internodes absent. Plants 1–3 m. Stems erect, glabrous or finely puberulent or villous, glabrescent; spines at nodes absent; prickles on internodes absent.
Leaves

petiole 2–7 cm, puberulent, short stipitate-glandular;

blade broadly reniform or cordate-orbiculate to deltate-ovate, nearly equally to irregularly 5-lobed, cleft nearly 1/4 to midrib, 2–7 cm, base subtruncate to cordate, surfaces puberulent to whitish-tomentose abaxially, puberulent adaxially or puberulent and colorless, sessile-glandular on both surfaces, lobes deltate to obtuse, margins finely 2–3 times crenate and denticulate or serrate, apex broadly acute.

petiole (0.4–)1–3(–4.8) cm, margins of young leaves often with slender extensions like multicelled hairs, surfaces finely pubescent, glabrescent;

blade broadly deltate-ovate to obovate, 3(–5)-lobed, cleft less than to slightly more than 1/2 to midrib (sometimes proximal leaves again shallowly lobed), (1–)1.6–3.6(–5.7) cm, base broadly cuneate to somewhat cordate, surfaces sometimes with colorless or yellowish, nearly sessile glands, finely pubescent or glabrous, glabrescent, lobes oblong-rounded, margins entire or with 2–5 rounded teeth, apex acute to obtuse.

Inflorescences

pendent to stiffly spreading or ascending or erect, 5–40-flowered racemes, 5–15 cm, axis crisped-pubescent and stipitate-glandular, flowers evenly spaced.

ascending to reflexed, 5–18-flowered racemes, 3–7 cm, axis glabrous, finely pubescent, or densely villous, flowers evenly spaced.

Pedicels

jointed, 5–10 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

bracts oblanceolate or lanceolate, 2–12 mm, with scattered, short hairs and stalked glands.

jointed, 2–8 mm, glabrous or densely villous;

bracts broadly deltate to obovate (similar to leaves), 4–9 mm, glabrous or densely villous.

Flowers

hypanthium white, pink, rose, or red, tubular to campanulate, 3–7 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

sepals not overlapping, spreading or reflexed, white, pink, or red, ovate-elliptic or oblong to oblanceolate or lanceolate, 4–5 mm;

petals not or nearly connivent to connivent, erect, white or pink to red, obovate-spatulate to oblong or almost square, not conspicuously revolute or inrolled, 1–3.5 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens shorter than to as long as petals;

filaments linear or slightly expanded at base, 1.2–2 mm, glabrous;

anthers cream, oblong-oval, 0.5–0.8 mm, apex shallowly notched;

ovary stipitate-glandular to strongly stipitate-glandular and crisped-puberulent;

styles connate nearly to stigmas, 4–6 mm, glabrous or with scattered, stipitate glands at base.

hypanthium yellow to yellowish green, narrowly tubular, 6–20 mm, glabrous;

sepals not overlapping, spreading, usually not reflexed, golden yellow, oblong-elliptic, 3–8 mm;

petals connivent, erect, yellow to orange or deep red, oblong-obovate, not conspicuously revolute or inrolled, 2–3(–4) mm;

nectary disc not conspicuous;

stamens nearly as long as petals;

filaments slightly expanded at base, 0.9–1.5(–2.2) mm, glabrous;

anthers white, oblong, 1.1–2 mm, apex minutely apiculate;

ovary glabrous;

styles connate almost to stigmas, (8.5–)9.8–12.5 mm, glabrous.

Berries

palatable but insipid, blue-black, glaucous, ovoid or globose, 3–9(–10) mm, yellowish or greenish stipitate-glandular.

palatable, usually red, orange, brown, or black, rarely yellow, globose, 5.2–10 mm, glabrous.

2n

= 16.

= 16.

Ribes sanguineum

Ribes aureum

Distribution
from FNA
CA; ID; OR; WA; BC [Introduced in c Europe]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AR; AZ; CA; CO; CT; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; ND; NE; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; SD; TN; TX; UT; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY; AB; ON; QC; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Ribes sanguineum is widely cultivated. It begins to bloom very early in the season, providing a nectar source for pollinators when little else is available.

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

Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).

Ribes aureum was introduced into cultivation in Europe early in the nineteenth century (F. V. Coville 1903). It is a major host of pinyon blister rust in Arizona, Colorado, and Utah, and of pinyon leaf rust in New Mexico (E. P. Van Arsdel and B. W. Geils 2004). Ribes aureum is a variable complex and the varieties may seem to intergrade. In California, var. aureum occurs in sagebrush scrub or coniferous forests at higher elevations (800–2600 m) than var. gracillimum; the sepals of var. aureum are longer than those of var. gracillimum (5–8 mm versus 3–4 mm), and its hypanthium is noticeably shorter relative to the sepals. Leaves of var. aureum are more highly lobed and are sparsely glandular in the Pacific Northwest and less lobed and more densely glandular in the southwest (H. D. Hammond, pers. comm.). In most of its range, var. villosum is so conspicuously villous as to be unmistakable; in the west some plants with strikingly long hypanthia are scarcely villous.

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

Key
1. Racemes 5-15(-20)-flowered, erect to stiffly spreading or ascending; sepals red.
var. sanguineum
1. Racemes 15-40-flowered, pendent; sepals pink to white.
var. glutinosum
1. Hypanthium lengths 1.5-2 times sepals.
var. aureum
1. Hypanthium lengths 2-3 times sepals
→ 2
2. Petals yellow, turning deep red; hypanthia 6-12 mm.
var. gracillimum
2. Petals yellow, turning orange; hypanthia 9-20 mm.
var. villosum
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 21. FNA vol. 8, p. 15.
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. 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. 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. 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. watsonianum, R. wolfii
Subordinate taxa
R. sanguineum var. glutinosum, R. sanguineum var. sanguineum
R. aureum var. aureum, R. aureum var. gracillimum, R. aureum var. villosum
Name authority Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 164. 1813 , Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 164. 1813 ,
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