''Ribes'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

of about 200 known species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s, most of them native to the

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The various species are known as currants or

gooseberries Gooseberry ( or (American and northern British) or (southern British)) is a common name for many species of ''Ribes'' (which also includes currants), as well as a large number of plants of similar appearance. The berries of those in the genu ...

, and some are cultivated for their edible

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in partic ...

or as

ornamental plant Ornamental plants or garden plants are plants that are primarily grown for their beauty but also for qualities such as scent or how they shape physical space. Many flowering plants and garden varieties tend to be specially bred cultivars that ...

s. ''Ribes'' is the only genus in the family Grossulariaceae.

Description

''Ribes'' species are medium shrublike plants with marked diversity in strikingly diverse flowers and fruit. They have either palmately lobed or compound leaves, and some have thorns. The

sepal A sepal () is a part of the flower of angiosperms (flowering plants). Usually green, sepals typically function as protection for the flower in bud, and often as support for the petals when in bloom., p. 106 The term ''sepalum'' was coined ...

s of the flowers are larger than the petals, and fuse into a tube or saucer shape. The

ovary The ovary is an organ in the female reproductive system that produces an ovum. When released, this travels down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where it may become fertilized by a sperm. There is an ovary () found on each side of the bod ...

is inferior, maturing into a berry with many seeds.

Taxonomy

''Ribes'' is the single genus in the

Saxifragales The Saxifragales (saxifrages) are an order of flowering plants (Angiosperms). They are an extremely diverse group of plants which include trees, shrubs, perennial herbs, succulent and aquatic plants. The degree of diversity in terms of vege ...

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Grossulariaceae. Although once included in the broader

circumscription Circumscription may refer to: *Circumscribed circle * Circumscription (logic) *Circumscription (taxonomy) *Circumscription theory The circumscription theory is a theory of the role of warfare in state formation in political anthropology, created ...

Saxifragaceae Saxifragaceae is a family of herbaceous perennial flowering plants, within the core eudicot order Saxifragales. The taxonomy of the family has been greatly revised and the scope much reduced in the era of molecular phylogenetic analysis. The ...

sensu lato ''Sensu'' is a Latin word meaning "in the sense of". It is used in a number of fields including biology, geology, linguistics, semiotics, and law. Commonly it refers to how strictly or loosely an expression is used in describing any particular c ...

'', it is now positioned as a

sister group In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

to Saxifragaceae ''sensu stricto''.

Subdivision

First treated on a worldwide basis in 1907, the infrageneric classification has undergone many revisions, and even in the era of

molecular phylogenetics Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

there has been contradictory evidence. Although sometimes treated as two separate genera, ''Ribes'' and ''Grossularia'' (Berger 1924), the consensus has been to consider it as a single genus, divided into a number of

subgenera In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed betwee ...

, the main ones of which are subgenus ''Ribes'' (currants) and subgenus ''Grossularia'' (gooseberries), further subdivided into sections. Janczewski (1907) considered six subgenera and eleven sections. Berger's twelve subgenera based on two distinct genera (see Table 1) have subsequently been demoted to sections. Weigend (2007) elevated a number of sections to produce a taxonomy of seven subgenera; ''Ribes'' (sections ''Ribes'', ''Heretiera'', ''Berisia'') ''Coreosma'', ''Calobotrya'' (sections ''Calobotrya'', ''Cerophyllum''), ''Symphocalyx'', ''Grossularioides'', ''Grossularia'', ''Parilla''. Taxonomy, according to Berger, modified by Sinnott (1985): * Subgenus ''Ribes'' L. (currants) 8 sections ** Section ''Berisia''

Spach Spach is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Édouard Spach (1801–1879), French botanist * Stephen Spach Stephen Joseph Spach (born July 18, 1982) is a former American football tight end who played in the National Football Le ...

(alpine currants) ** Section ''Calobotrya'' (Spach) Jancz. (ornamental currants) ** Section ''Coreosma'' (Spach) Jancz. (black currants) ** Section ''Grossularioides'' ( Jancz.) Rehd. (spiny or Gooseberry-stemmed currants) ** Section ''Heritiera'' Jancz. (dwarf or skunk currants) ** Section ''Parilla'' Jancz. (Andine or South American currants) ** Section ''Ribes'' L. (red currants) ** Section ''Symphocalyx''

Berland. Jean-Louis Berlandier (1803 – 1851) was a French-Mexican naturalist, physician, and anthropologist. Early life Berlandier was born in Geneva, and later trained as a botanist there. During this time he probably served an apprenticeship to a ...

(golden currants) * Subgenus ''Grossularia'' (

Mill. Philip Miller FRS (1691 – 18 December 1771) was an English botanist and gardener of Scottish descent. Miller was chief gardener at the Chelsea Physic Garden for nearly 50 years from 1722, and wrote the highly popular ''The Gardeners Dicti ...

) Pers. (Gooseberries) 4 sections ** Section ''Grossularia'' (Mill.)

Nutt. Thomas Nuttall (5 January 1786 – 10 September 1859) was an English botanist and zoologist who lived and worked in America from 1808 until 1841. Nuttall was born in the village of Long Preston, near Settle in the West Riding of Yorkshire and ...

** Section ''Robsonia''

** Section ''Hesperia''

A.Berger Alwin Berger (28 August 1871 – 20 April 1931) was a German botanist best known for his contribution to the nomenclature of succulent plants, particularly agaves and cacti. Born in Germany he worked at the botanical gardens in Dresden and Fra ...

** Section ''Lobbia'' A. Berger Some authors continued to treat ''Hesperia'' and ''Lobbia'' as subgenera. Early molecular studies suggested that subgenus ''Grossularia'' was actually embedded within subgenus ''Ribes''. Analysis of combined molecular datasets confirms subgenus ''Grossularia'' as a

monophyletic In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic ...

group, with two main lineages, sect. ''Grossularia'' and another clade consisting of

glabrous Glabrousness (from the Latin '' glaber'' meaning "bald", "hairless", "shaved", "smooth") is the technical term for a lack of hair, down, setae, trichomes or other such covering. A glabrous surface may be a natural characteristic of all or part o ...

gooseberies, including ''Hesperia'', ''Lobbia'' and ''Robsonia''. Other monophyletic groups identified were ''Calobotrya'', ''Parilla'', ''Symphocalyx'' and ''Berisia''. However sections ''Ribes'', ''Coreosma'' and ''Heritiera'' were not well supported. Consequently, there is insufficient resolution to justify further taxonomic revision.

Species

Grossulariaceae Fuchsia flowered Gooseberry Ribes speciosum

There are around 200 species of ''Ribes''. Selected species include: *''

Ribes alpinum ''Ribes alpinum'', known as mountain currant or alpine currant, is a small deciduous, dioecious shrub native to central and northern Europe from Finland and Norway south to the Alps and Pyrenees and Caucasus, Georgia; in the south of its range, ...

'' *''

Ribes aureum ''Ribes aureum'', known by the common names golden currant, clove currant, pruterberry and buffalo currant, is a species of flowering plant in the genus ''Ribes'' native to North America. Description The plant is a small to medium-sized deciduo ...

'' *''

Ribes cereum ''Ribes cereum'' is a species of currant known by the common names wax currant and squaw currant; the ''pedicellare'' variety is known as whisky currant. The species is native to western North America. Description ''Ribes cereum'' is a sprea ...

'' *''

Ribes divaricatum ''Ribes divaricatum'' is a species in the genus ''Ribes'' found in the forests, woodlands, and coastal scrub of western North America from British Columbia to California. The three accepted varieties have various common names which include the wo ...

'' *''

Ribes glandulosum ''Ribes glandulosum'', the skunk currant, is a North American species of flowering plant in the currant family. It is widespread in Canada (all 10 provinces and all 3 territories) and is also found in parts of the United States (Alaska, the Grea ...

'' *''

Ribes hirtellum ''Ribes hirtellum'' is a species of gooseberry commonly known as wild gooseberry or swamp gooseberry. It is native to Canada and the northern United States. Cultivated gooseberries are derived from this species and from '' Ribes uva-crispa''. '' ...

'' *''

Ribes hudsonianum ''Ribes hudsonianum'' is a North American species of currant, known by the common name northern black currant. ''Ribes hudsonianum'' grows in moist wooded areas, such as mountain streambanks and in swamp thickets. They are upright to erect s ...

'' *''

Ribes inerme ''Ribes inerme'' is a species of Ribes, currant known by the common names whitestem gooseberry and white stemmed gooseberry. It is native to western North America from British Columbia to California and westward to the Rocky Mountains. It grows i ...

'' *''

Ribes lacustre The shrub ''Ribes lacustre'' is known by the common names prickly currant, black swamp gooseberry, and black gooseberry. It is widely distributed in North America. Description The shrub grows erect to spreading, . Clusters of reddish to maroon f ...

'' *''

Ribes laurifolium ''Ribes laurifolium'', the laurel-leaved currant, is a species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, native to China, in Guizhou, West Sichuan and Yunnan. Growing to a maximum of tall by broad, this evergreen, dioecious shrub has lau ...

'' *''

Ribes lobbii ''Ribes lobbii'' (known commonly by the names gummy gooseberry, fuchsia-flowered gooseberry or pioneer gooseberry) is a shrubby, deciduous, shade-intolerant perennial dicot found on the western coast of North America. It was first described in ...

'' *''

Ribes montigenum ''Ribes montigenum'' is a species of currant known by the common names mountain gooseberry, alpine prickly currant, western prickly gooseberry, and gooseberry currant. It is native to western North America from Washington south to California ...

'' *''

Ribes nevadense ''Ribes nevadense'' (sometimes spelled ''R. nevadaense'') is a species of currant known by the common names Sierra currant and mountain pink currant. Distribution ''Ribes nevadense'' is native to several of the mountain ranges in California, i ...

'' *'' Ribes nigrum'' *''

Ribes oxyacanthoides ''Ribes oxyacanthoides'' is a species of flowering plant in the Grossulariaceae, gooseberry family known by the common name Canadian gooseberry. Its various subspecies have common names of their own. It is native to North America, where it occurs ...

'' *''

Ribes rubrum The redcurrant or red currant (''Ribes rubrum'') is a member of the genus ''Ribes'' in the Grossulariaceae, gooseberry family. It is Indigenous (ecology), native to western Europe. The species is widely cultivated and has garden refugee, escaped ...

'' *''

Ribes sanguineum ''Ribes sanguineum'', the flowering currant, redflower currant, red-flowering currant, or red currant is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, native to the western United States and Canada. Description It i ...

'' *''

Ribes speciosum ''Ribes speciosum'' is a species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, which includes the edible currants and gooseberries. It is a spiny deciduous shrub with spring-flowering, elongate red flowers that resemble fuchsias, though it ...

'' *''

Ribes triste ''Ribes triste'', known as the northern redcurrant, swamp redcurrant, or wild redcurrant, is an Asian and North American shrub in the gooseberry family. It is widespread across Canada and the northern United States, as well as in eastern Asia (R ...

'' *''

Ribes uva-crispa ''Ribes uva-crispa'', known as gooseberry or European gooseberry, is a species of flowering shrub in the currant family, Grossulariaceae. It is native to Europe, the Caucasus and northern Africa. Gooseberry bushes produce an edible fruit and ar ...

Distribution and habitat

''Ribes'' is widely distributed through the Northern Hemisphere, and also extending south in the mountainous areas of South America. Species can be found in meadows or near streams.

Ecology

Currants are used as food plants by the

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. Th ...

e of some Lepidoptera species.

Cultivation

The genus ''Ribes'' includes the edible currants:

blackcurrant The blackcurrant (''Ribes nigrum''), also known as black currant or cassis, is a deciduous shrub in the family Grossulariaceae grown for its edible berries. It is native to temperate parts of central and northern Europe and northern Asia, ...

redcurrant The redcurrant or red currant (''Ribes rubrum'') is a member of the genus '' Ribes'' in the gooseberry family. It is native to western Europe. The species is widely cultivated and has escaped into the wild in many regions. Description ''Ribe ...

and

white currant The white currant or whitecurrant is a group of cultivars of the red currant (''Ribes rubrum''), a species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, native to Europe. It is sometimes mislabelled as '' Ribes glandulosum'',Darina Allen w ...

, as well as the European gooseberry ''

'' and several hybrid varieties. It should not be confused with the dried currants used in cakes and puddings, which are from the

Zante currant Zante currants, Corinth raisins, Corinthian raisins or outside the United States simply currants, are raisins of the small, sweet, seedless grape cultivar Black Corinth (''Vitis vinifera''). The name comes from the Anglo-French phrase "raisin ...

, a small-fruited

cultivar A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture ...

of the grape ''

Vitis vinifera ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, is a species of flowering plant, native to the Mediterranean Basin, Mediterranean region, Central Europe, and southwestern Asia, from Morocco and Portugal north to southern Germany and east to northern ...

''. ''Ribes'' gives its name to the popular blackcurrant cordial

Ribena Ribena ( ) is a brand of blackcurrant-based soft drink (both uncarbonated and carbonated), and fruit drink concentrate designed to be mixed with water. It is available in bottles, cans and multi-packs. Originally of British origin, it was pr ...

. The genus also includes the group of ornamental plants collectively known as the flowering currants, for instance '' R. sanguineum''.

United States

There are restrictions on growing some ''Ribes'' species in some U.S. states, as they are the main alternate host for

white pine blister rust ''Cronartium ribicola'' is a species of rust fungus in the family Cronartiaceae that causes the disease white pine blister rust. Other names include: (French), (German), (Spanish). ''Cronartium ribicola'' is native to China, and was subseq ...

Uses

Blackfoot The Blackfoot Confederacy, ''Niitsitapi'' or ''Siksikaitsitapi'' (ᖹᐟᒧᐧᒣᑯ, meaning "the people" or " Blackfoot-speaking real people"), is a historic collective name for linguistically related groups that make up the Blackfoot or Bla ...

people used blackcurrant root (''

'') for the treatment of kidney diseases and menstrual and menopausal problems. The Cree used the fruit of ''

'' as a fertility enhancer to assist women in becoming pregnant. European immigrants who settled in North America in the 18th-century typically made wine from both red and white currants.

References

Bibliography

Books and theses

* * * * * * * ** , in *

Articles

* * * * * * * * * *

Websites

* * *
Entry on ''Ribes'' at Mark Rieger's UGa fruit crops site

External links

{{Authority control

Ribes ''Ribes'' is a genus of about 200 known species of flowering plants, most of them native to the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The various species are known as currants or gooseberries, and some are cultivated for their edible ...

Saxifragales genera Edible plants Garden plants of North America Garden plants of Europe Garden plants of Asia Shrubs Drought-tolerant plants Bird food plants Butterfly food plants Plants used in traditional Native American medicine Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Melliferous flowers