''Ribes amarum'' is a species of
currant known by the common name bitter gooseberry.
[ It is endemic to California, where it is known from mountains, foothills, and canyons. Its habitat includes ]Chaparral
Chaparral ( ) is a shrubland plant community and geographical feature found primarily in the U.S. state of California, in southern Oregon, and in the northern portion of the Baja California Peninsula in Mexico. It is shaped by a Mediterranean c ...
.Calflora taxon report, University of California, ''Ribes amarum'' McClatchie, bitter gooseberry
/ref>
Description
''Ribes amarum'' is a shrub
A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
growing to one to two meters (40-80 inches) in height. Nodes along the stem each bear three spines up to a centimeter (0.4 inch) in length. The hairy, glandular leaves are 2 to 4 centimeters (0.8-1.6 inches) long and generally rounded in shape, divided into 3 to 5 rounded toothed lobes.[Flora of North America: ''Ribes amarum'']
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The inflorescence is a solitary flower or raceme
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the s ...
of up to three flowers which hang from leaf axils. The showy flower has five pointed sepals in shades of purple-red which are reflexed upward. At the center is a tubular corolla of white or pink-tinged petals around five stamen
The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10
Morphology and terminology
A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...
s and two styles. The fruit is a bristly berry
A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...
up to 2 centimeters wide which is bright red, ripening purple.[
]
References
External links
Jepson Manual Treatment — ''Ribes amarum''''Ribes amarum'' — Calphotos Photo gallery, University of California
amarum
Endemic flora of California
Natural history of the California chaparral and woodlands
Natural history of the California Coast Ranges
Natural history of the Channel Islands of California
Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges
Natural history of the San Francisco Bay Area
Natural history of the Santa Monica Mountains
Natural history of the Transverse Ranges
Plants described in 1894
Flora without expected TNC conservation status
{{Saxifragales-stub