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Victor's gooseberry

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

Habit Plants 0.5–2 m. Stems erect, pubescent, stipitate-glandular; spines at nodes 1–3, 5–15 mm; prickles on internodes sparse. Plants 1–4 m. Stems erect, finely pubescent, stipitate-glandular; spines at nodes absent; prickles on internodes absent.
Leaves

petiole 1.5–5 cm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

blade round-ovate, 3–5-lobed, cleft 1/4–1/3 to midrib, 1.5–5 cm, base truncate to cordate, surfaces finely pubescent, stipitate-glandular, lobes rounded, margins with few shallow teeth, apex rounded.

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.

Inflorescences

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

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

not jointed, 3–4 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular;

bracts lanceolate-ovate, 2–3 mm, pubescent, stipitate-glandular.

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

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

Flowers

hypanthium greenish white, conic, as wide as long, 3 mm (1/4–1/3 as long as sepals), stipitate-glandular;

sepals not overlapping, reflexed, white, pink-tinged at base, oblong-lanceolate, 6–11 mm;

petals connivent, erect, white, oblong, inrolled, 3–5 mm;

nectary disc not prominent;

stamens 2 times as long as petals;

filaments linear, ca. 6 mm, glabrous;

anthers cream, lanceolate-sagittate, 3 mm, apex mucronate;

ovary densely glandular, with longer glandless bristles;

styles connate to middle, 9–11 mm, glabrous.

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.

Berries

palatability not known, golden yellow, globose, 8–10 mm, glandular-bristly.

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

2n

= 16.

Ribes victoris

Ribes sanguineum

Phenology Flowering Apr.
Habitat Wooded canyon slopes
Elevation 0-800 m (0-2600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; OR; WA; BC [Introduced in c Europe]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Ribes victoris occurs in the counties around San Francisco Bay north to Sonoma and Lake counties.

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

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.)

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
Source FNA vol. 8, p. 32. FNA vol. 8, p. 21.
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. sanguineum, R. sericeum, R. speciosum, R. thacherianum, R. triste, R. tularense, R. uva-crispa, R. velutinum, R. viburnifolium, 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. 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
Synonyms Grossularia greeneiana, Grossularia victoris, R. victoris var. minus
Name authority Greene: Pittonia 1: 224. 1888 , Pursh: Fl. Amer. Sept. 1: 164. 1813 ,
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