BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS
SPECIES: Ribes cereum | Wax Currant 



GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : 
Wax currant is a native, deciduous, nonrhizomatous shrub growing from
1.65 to 4.95 feet (0.5-1.5 m) tall [30].  Its numerous branches are
smooth-barked. The small, orbicular, three- to five-lobed leaves are 0.2
to 1 inch (0.5-2.5 cm) long and 0.28 to 2 inches (0.7-5 cm) wide
[28,47].  Short-stalked, tubular flowers form drooping clusters [18,28].
Globose berries about 0.48 inch (1.2 cm) in diameter contain numerous
seeds [20,28].


RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : 
   Phanerophyte


REGENERATION PROCESSES : 
Wax currant reproduces mainly by seed.  Its ability to sprout from the
root crown is described in the literature as "weak" [6,7,11].  In
east-central Idaho, Peek and others [51] observed wax currant sprouting
2 years after a low-severity, prescribed fire.

Shrubs of Ribes spp. begin fruiting after 3 years [1].  Seeds require
scarification to germinate [38,39].  Many seeds fall beneath the parent
plant; they are also dispersed by birds and mammals.  Fallen seeds
remain viable in the soil and duff for many years [38,39].  Low-severity
fire may promote germination of soil-stored seed [6,7,11,17].


SITE CHARACTERISTICS : 
Wax currant commonly occurs on dry, open slopes, ridges, and rock
outcrops at elevations from 4,950 to 13,200 feet (1,500-4,000 m)
[7,18,19,28,29].

Wax currant grows on a variety of substrates.  In Montana, wax currant
grows in soils that range from sandy to clayey [8].  In Baker's cypress
communities (California and Oregon), wax currant occurs on serpentine
soils or on lava flows where only a superficial layer of soil has
accumulated [13].  At Lava Beds National Monument in California, wax
currant grows on rocky basalt lava flows [14].

Climate varies throughout the range of wax currant.  Lava Beds National
Monument exhibits a modified maritime climate with warm, dry summers and
cool, wet winters.  Average annual precipitation is 13.6 inches (340
mm).  The daily mean high temperature in July is 80.6 degrees Fahrenheit
(27 deg C) and in January, the daily mean low temperature is 21.2
degrees Fahrenheit (-6 deg C) [43].  In the Cache la Poudre River
drainage in Colorado, climate is characterized by cold winters and warm
spring and summer months.  Mean annual precipitation is 14.92 inches
(373 mm).  Most of the precipitation occurs between April and September.
The mean temperature in January, the coldest month, is 26.1 degrees
Fahrenheit (-3.3 deg C), and in July the mean temperature is 69.26
degrees Fahrenheit (20.7 deg C) [36].


SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : 
Wax currant is shade intolerant [38,39].  Although it sometimes grows in
open coniferous forests, it occurs most often and grows most vigorously
on sites without forest canopy.

In central Idaho, wax currant is considered an early seral species
within Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) habitat types.  It is one of
the first shrubs to dominate well-scarified sites but declines when a
canopy taller than its own develops.  A few wax currant may remain
present to the midseral stage.  Wax currant shrubs having relatively
dense canopies provide favorable microsites for Douglas-fir seedlings
[38,39].

In the Bitterroot Mountains of Idaho, Ribes spp. play an important role
in secondary succession.  Their roots stabilize the soil, and their
foliage may shelter fir (Abies spp.), spruce (Picea spp.), and western
white pine (Pinus monticola) seedlings [26].


SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : 
Wax currant flowers from April to June, and the fruit ripens by August
[30,46].

Related categories for Species: Ribes cereum | Wax Currant