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You are here >1Up Info > Wildlife, Animals, and Plants > Plant Species > Shrub > Species: Ribes montigenum | Gooseberry Currant
 

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BOTANICAL AND ECOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS

SPECIES: Ribes montigenum | Gooseberry Currant
GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS : Gooseberry currant is a native, deciduous shrub growing from 0.6 to 3.3 feet (0.2-1 m) tall. Its many low, straggling branches are bristly. The orbicular, five-lobed leaves are 0.4 to 1.6 inches (1-4 cm) long, at least as wide, and glandular-pubescent on both sides. Drooping racemes are three- to eight-flowered. The smooth, globose berries are 0.2 to 0.4 inch (5-10 mm) in diameter and contain numerous seeds [6,10,14,16,45]. RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM : Phanerophyte REGENERATION PROCESSES : Gooseberry currant reproduces vegetatively and by seed. Neither the root system of gooseberry currant nor its ability to sprout from the root crown after fire or disturbance is described in the literature; however, on the Wasatch Plateau, Utah, Ellison [11] observed gooseberry currant forming adventitous roots. Decumbent outer branches partially covered by earth were rooting. The plants were spreading outward and dying in the center, forming a clonal ring. The rings were sometimes 15 to 20 feet (4.5-6.1 m) in diameter. Ribes spp. generally begin fruiting after 3 years [3]. Many seeds fall beneath the parent plant; they are also dispersed by birds and animals. Fallen seeds of Ribes spp. may remain viable in the soil and duff for many years [38,39]. Mineral soil and scarification generally enhance germination in Ribes spp. [38,39,46]. In the labortory, a 53 percent germination was obtained without scarification by stratifying gooseberry currant seeds at 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0 deg C) for 200 to 300 days. Seeds were stratified and germinated in sand moistened with nutrient solution [28]. SITE CHARACTERISTICS : Gooseberry currant occurs on a variety of sites. It is found in dry, rocky places from the middle subalpine zone to timberline, sometimes extending into alpine communities. It grows on open, talus or scree slopes, on ridges, and in boulder fields, meadows, and forests [5,16,25,42,45]. It may also occur along streams and in wet forests, ravines, and washes [10,23]. Gooseberry currant occurs on loamy or clayey soils that contain gravel [7,23,40]. In northern Utah, habitat types in which gooseberry currant occurs have an average litter depth of 1.2 to 2.9 inches (3-7.4 cm) [23]. In central Idaho, average litter depth where gooseberry currant occurs may reach 2 inches (5 cm) [40]. Where gooseberry currant occurs in the Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmanii)-bristlecone pine (Pinus aristata) series in New Mexico, climate is at the cold extreme for forests. The mean annual air temperature is 34 to 36 degrees Fahrenheit (1-2 deg C), and the mean soil temperature is 33 to 34 degrees Fahrenheit (1 deg C). The growing season for forest plants is less than 110 days [24]. Elevational ranges for gooseberry currant are as follows: feet meters California [17] 6,930-15,840 2,100-4,800 Colorado [16] 7,500-11,500 2,273-3,485 central Idaho [40] 8,400- 9,800 2,545-2,970 Utah [45] 7,046-12,078 2,135-3,660 SUCCESSIONAL STATUS : Gooseberry currant is somewhat shade tolerant. It grows in dense forests with few canopy openings, but it occurs most often and grows most vigorously on sites without forest canopy. In the Big Horn Mountains of Wyoming, gooseberry currant occurred in the understory of spruce (Picea spp.)-fir (Abies spp.) forests but its average cover was less than 1 percent [7]. In the Crested Butte area of west-central Colorado, gooseberry currant was the most common tall shrub in dense spruce-fir forests, occurring throughout the understory with a constancy of 72 percent and an average cover of 4 percent. In canopy openings it formed thickets [21]. Near timberline in Colorado and Utah, gooseberry currant formed a dense fringe around spruce and fir "tree islands" [11,18,21,23]. SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT : Gooseberry currant flowers from late June to August [6,28]. Fruit ripens from August to September [28].

Related categories for Species: Ribes montigenum | Gooseberry Currant

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Information Courtesy: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Fire Effects Information System

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