VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Ribes montigenum | Gooseberry Currant 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
The fruit of Ribes spp. is a valuable food source for songbirds,
chipmunks, ground squirrels, and other animals [22].


PALATABILITY : 
Gooseberry currant is not very palatable to livestock [8,11].  In
Ephraim Canyon on the Wasatch Plateau, Utah, domestic sheep browsed
gooseberry currant only a little or not at all.  Observations were made
in a 9-acre pasture for 2 consecutive years in July while a variety of
other forage species were available [11].  Dittberner and Olson [8] rate
the palatability of gooseberry currant in Utah as poor for cattle and
horses and good for sheep.


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Currants (Ribes spp.) contain high concentrations of mono- and
disaccharides [48].


COVER VALUE : 
Cover values for gooseberry currant are as follows [8]:

                              UT            WY
Pronghorn                    poor          poor
Elk                          poor          poor 
Mule deer                    poor          fair 
White-tailed deer            ----          poor
Small mammals                fair          good
Small nongame birds          fair          good
Upland game birds            fair          good
Waterfowl                    poor          poor


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Gooseberry currant can be used to revegetate disturbed mountain areas.
Plummer [47] rated the suitability of gooseberry currant for restoring
high-elevation mountain environments as follows:

        seed establishment			good
        transplant establishment		very good
        seed production	                        medium
        natural seed spread			medium
        vegetative spread			good
        growth rate				medium
        soil stability				good
        adaptation to disturbance		good


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
Currants (Ribes spp.) can be used for making jam, jelly, or pie [28].
Some western Indian tribes used currants for making pemmican [26].


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
Gooseberry currant is an alternate host for white pine blister rust
(Cronartium ribicola) which infests five-needled pines.  Because of
their association with the rust, Ribes spp. have been the targets of
various eradication efforts; however, these efforts have not been
successful in the western states [15,27].

Related categories for Species: Ribes montigenum | Gooseberry Currant