Ribes amarum
Encyclopedia
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 in the central and southwestern parts of the state. Its habitat includes chaparral
.
growing to one to two meters in maximum height. Nodes along the stem each bear three spines up to a centimeter in length. The hairy, glandular leaves are 2 to 4 centimeters long and generally rounded in shape, divided into three to five rounded toothed lobes.
The inflorescence
is a solitary flower or raceme
of up to three flowers which hang from leaf axils. The showy flower has five pointed sepal
s 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
s and two styles
. The fruit is a bristly berry
up to 2 centimeters wide which is bright red, ripening purple.
Ribes
Ribes is a genus of about 150 species of flowering plants native throughout the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It is usually treated as the only genus in the family Grossulariaceae. Seven subgenera are recognized....
known by the common name Bitter gooseberry. It is endemic to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, where it is known from mountains, foothills, and canyons in the central and southwestern parts of the state. Its habitat includes chaparral
Chaparral
Chaparral is a shrubland or heathland plant community found primarily in the U.S. state of California and in the northern portion of the Baja California peninsula, Mexico...
.
Description
Ribes amarum is a shrubShrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
growing to one to two meters in maximum height. Nodes along the stem each bear three spines up to a centimeter in length. The hairy, glandular leaves are 2 to 4 centimeters long and generally rounded in shape, divided into three to five rounded toothed lobes.
The inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
is a solitary flower or raceme
Raceme
A raceme is a type of inflorescence that is unbranched and indeterminate and bears pedicellate flowers — flowers having short floral stalks called pedicels — along the axis. In botany, axis means a shoot, in this case one bearing the flowers. In a raceme, the oldest flowers are borne...
of up to three flowers which hang from leaf axils. The showy flower has five pointed sepal
Sepal
A sepal is a part of the flower of angiosperms . Collectively the sepals form the calyx, which is the outermost whorl of parts that form a flower. Usually green, sepals have the typical function of protecting the petals when the flower is in bud...
s 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
Stamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s and two styles
Gynoecium
Gynoecium is most commonly used as a collective term for all carpels in a flower. A carpel is the ovule and seed producing reproductive organ in flowering plants. Carpels are derived from ovule-bearing leaves which evolved to form a closed structure containing the ovules...
. The fruit is a bristly berry
Berry
The botanical definition of a berry is a fleshy fruit produced from a single ovary. Grapes are an example. The berry is the most common type of fleshy fruit in which the entire ovary wall ripens into an edible pericarp. They may have one or more carpels with a thin covering and fleshy interiors....
up to 2 centimeters wide which is bright red, ripening purple.
See also
- California chaparral and woodlandsCalifornia chaparral and woodlandsThe California chaparral and woodlands is a terrestrial ecoregion of lower northern, central, and southern California and northwestern Baja California , located on the west coast of North America...
- California coastal sage and chaparral ecoregionCalifornia coastal sage and chaparral ecoregionThe California coastal sage and chaparral, a sub-ecoregion of the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion, is found in southwestern California and northwestern Baja California in Mexico.-Location:...
- California montane chaparral and woodlandsCalifornia montane chaparral and woodlandsThe California montane chaparral and woodlands ecoregion covers , including the mountains of the Transverse, Peninsular, and Santa Lucia Ranges of California. It is part of the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome, with cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers...
- California interior chaparral and woodlandsCalifornia interior chaparral and woodlandsThe California interior chaparral and woodlands ecoregion covers in an elliptical ring around the California Central Valley. It occurs on hills and mountains ranging from to . It is part of the Mediterranean forests, woodlands, and scrub biome, with cool, wet winters and hot, dry summers...