[Currants and Gooseberries: The Genus Ribes West of the Cascade Mountains of Oregon and Washington]
Coast Black Gooseberry, Spreading Gooseberry, Straggly Currant, Straggly Gooseberry
Ribes divaricatum var. divaricatum
Synonyms: Grossularia divaricata, Ribes divaricatum var. glabriflorum, Ribes divaricatum var. rigidum, Ribes suksdorfii
The photo above shows a close-up of the flower of straggly gooseberry as seen from along the Springwater Trail west of Palmblad Avenue in eastern Gresham, OR...........May 24, 2011. Note the numerous spreading hairs on the filaments and the small, ciliate-margined bracts at the base of the peduncle.
Characteristics: Straggly currant is also called wax currant or coast black currant.
It is a deciduous, spreading shrub with many branches from 1.5-3 meters high.
It commonly may have several thicker branches which may arch over. The bark
is gray to brownish and unarmed except where the leaves attach. The younger
twigs are whitish or purplish gray and 2-3 mm thick. The 1-3 spines found at
each leaf node are downward curving and 10-20 mm long. The leaves are small,
2-6 cm wide, and simple with palmate venation. The blades are ovate in shape
and have 3-5 lobes with toothed margins. The petioles may be shorter to slightly
longer than the blades.The inflorescence is a drooping, slender, 2-4 flowered raceme
which arises from the leaf axils. Individual flowers are conical or shallowly-spreading
bell-shaped. The calyx lobes are narrowly oblong, obtuse, or rounded and 5-7
mm long The petals are wedge-shaped to obovate, 1.5-2.5 mm long, and about less
than half as long as the calyx lobes. The stamens are longer than the calyx
by more than 1-2 mm. The berries are reddish purple, occur in 2s or 3s, rounded,
and about 1 cm in diameter.
Habitat:
Straggly currant is found in moist open woods and hillsides,
and is common along streams.
Range: Straggly currant may be found from southern British Columbia
south to California. It is found eastward to southwestern Alberta.In the Columbia River Gorge, it may be found between the elevations
of 100'-2100' from Troutdale, OR east to near Bingen, WA.
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Additional close-up photos of straggly gooseberry as seen from along the Springwater Trail west of Palmblad Avenue in eastern Gresham, OR................May 24, 2011.
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Straggly currant blooming at Nob Hill Park in St. Helens, OR.........April 3, 2016.
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The photo at left shows the ventral leaf blade (upper) and dorsal leaf blade (lower) of straggly currant as seen at Ainsworth State Park in the western Columbia River Gorge..........April 20, 2006. The photo at right shows straggly currant in bloom in the webmaster's woodland garden in Gresham, OR.......April 9, 2020..
Paul Slichter