Ribes sanguineum

Blood Currant ( Ribes sanguineum ), Raceme

The blood - currant ( Ribes sanguineum ) is a plant of the genus currants (Ribes ) in the family of gooseberry plants ( Grossulariaceae ). This shrub is native to North America.

Description

The blood - currant grows as a deciduous, loosely beasteter shrub and reaches stature heights of 1 to 4 meters. The bark is gray-brown to reddish brown. The leaves are five-lobed and with 2-7 cm about as wide as long. The fresh leaves emerge in the spring smells resinous.

The flowers appear simultaneously with the leaves in April to May. The flowers are borne in racemose inflorescences 3-7 cm long 5 to 30. The flowers are 5-10 mm in size. The five petals bright red to pink. The flowers are often visited by hummingbirds in California, with us of butterflies.

In July ripe, then dark - purple, blue -tired, about 1 cm large berries. They are edible and have little flavor.

Dissemination

The blood - currant dates from western North America and comes there from British Columbia to northern California before. It comes in California at elevations up to 2200 m.

System

In the manner of Ribes sanguineum following varieties (partly viewed as a subspecies ) can be distinguished:

• Ribes sanguineum var glutinosum ( Benth. ) Loudon
• Ribes sanguineum Pursh var sanguineum

The chromosome number is 2n = 16

Use

Because of the bright red flowering currant blood is often planted as an ornamental shrub in gardens since 1826.

Cultivated forms

There have been bred many varieties; the flower colors cover the spectrum from white to dark red. Here are a few varieties:

• 'King Edward VII': Has red flowers.
• ' Pulborough Scarlet': Do as red flowers.
• 'White Icicle ': This cultivar has white flowers.

Swell

• Entry at Plants of British Columbia (English )
• Jepson Flora Project at entry ( german)
• Ruprecht Duell, Herfried Kutzelnigg: Pocket Dictionary of Plants in Germany. 7th edition, Quelle & Meyer Verlag, 2011, ISBN 978-3-494-01424-1