Ribes velutinum
| Desert gooseberry | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Order: | Saxifragales |
| Family: | Grossulariaceae |
| Genus: | Ribes |
| Species: | R. velutinum
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| Binomial name | |
| Ribes velutinum | |
| Varieties | |
|
Ribes velutinum var. gooddingii (M.Peck) C.L.Hitchc. [2][3] | |
| Synonyms[4] | |
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Ribes velutinum is a North American species of currant known by the common name desert gooseberry.[5]
Description
[edit]Ribes velutinum is a spreading shrub growing to 2 metres (6+1⁄2 ft) in height.[6] It has a thick, arching, multibranched stem growing up to 2 metres (6+1⁄2 ft) long. Nodes along the stems are armed with spines that may reach 2 centimetres (3⁄4 in) in length. These are not 'prickles', as they are derived from leaf material rather than plant epidermis (skin).
The thick, leathery leaves have generally rounded blades divided shallowly into three or five lobes and dotted with glandular hairs. The small blades are borne on petioles.
The inflorescence is a solitary flower or raceme of up to four flowers. Each small flower is a tube of white or yellowish sepals with smaller, similarly colored petals inside. The bloom period is April to May.
The fruit is a berry 0.5–1 cm (1⁄4–3⁄8 in) wide, which ripens yellow, then reddish or purple.[7][8] It is dry and unpalatable.[6]
Varieties
[edit]- Ribes velutinum var. goodingii — Gooding's gooseberry, from the Great Basin region in California, Nevada, Idaho, Washington, and Oregon[9]
Distribution and habitat
[edit]It is endemic to the deserts and mountains of the Western United States. It is native to areas in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, California, and Arizona.[10][11]
It grows in many types of habitat, including sagebrush scrub, pinyon–juniper woodland, and yellow pine forest.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ Species was first described and published in the Bulletin of the California Academy of Sciences 1(3): 83. 1885. "Plant Name Details for Ribes velutinum". IPNI. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
- ^ "Profile for Ribes velutinum variety goodingii (Gooding's gooseberry)". PLANTS Database. USDA, NRCS. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
- ^ Ribes velutinum var. goodingii was published in Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest 3: 84. 1961. "Plant Name Details for Ribes velutinum var. goodingii". IPNI. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
- ^ Tropicos, Ribes velutinum Greene
- ^ a b Calflora: Ribes velutinum
- ^ a b Turner, Mark; Kuhlmann, Ellen (2014). Trees & Shrubs of the Pacific Northwest (1st ed.). Portland, OR: Timber Press. p. 212. ISBN 978-1-60469-263-1.
- ^ Flora of North America, Ribes velutinum
- ^ Greene, Edward Lee 1885. Bulletin of the California Academy of Sciences 1(3): 83–84
- ^ USDA Plants Profile for Ribes velutinum var. gooddingii (Gooding's gooseberry)
- ^ "Profile for Ribes velutinum (desert gooseberry)". PLANTS Database. USDA, NRCS. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
- ^ Biota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map
External links
[edit]- Jepson Manual eFlora (TJM2) treatment of Ribes velutinum
- Missouri Botanical Garden: herbarium specimen (1905)
- UC Calphotos gallery: Ribes velutinum images
- Ribes
- Endemic flora of the United States
- Flora of California
- Flora of the Northwestern United States
- Flora of the Southwestern United States
- Flora of the Great Basin
- Flora of the Sierra Nevada (United States)
- Flora of the California desert regions
- Natural history of the Mojave Desert
- Plants described in 1885
- Taxa named by Edward Lee Greene