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

Photo is of parent taxon

blood currant, flowering currant, pink flowering currant

Habit Plants 1–4 m.
Stems

erect, finely pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

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.

blades thin, base cordate or subtruncate, surfaces puberulent, sessile-glandular.

Racemes

pendent, 15–40-flowered, 5–15 cm.

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.

Pedicels

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

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

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 rose or rarely white, tubular to slightly campanulate, 5–7 mm;

sepals reflexed, pink to white, lanceolate;

petals connivent, white or pink, oblong to almost square;

stamens as long as petals;

ovary stipitate-glandular;

styles glabrous.

Berries

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

ovoid, 3–6(–10) mm, densely stipitate-glandular.

2n

= 16.

Ribes sanguineum

Ribes sanguineum var. glutinosum

Phenology Flowering Jan–May.
Habitat Wet or moist canyons, moist dunes
Elevation 0-2300 m [0-7500 ft]
Distribution
from FNA
CA; ID; OR; WA; BC [Introduced in c Europe]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; OR
[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.)

Variety glutinosum occurs in the Coast Ranges of Oregon and California south to Santa Barbara County.

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

Parent taxa Grossulariaceae > Ribes Grossulariaceae > Ribes > Ribes sanguineum
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. sanguineum var. sanguineum
Subordinate taxa
R. sanguineum var. glutinosum, R. sanguineum var. sanguineum
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
Synonyms R. glutinosum
Name authority Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 164. 1813 , (Bentham) Loudon: Arbor. Frutic. Brit., 988. (1838)
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 21. Treatment author: Nancy R. Morin. FNA vol. 8, p. 21. Treatment author: Nancy R. Morin.
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