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Ribes aureum

Common name:	Golden Currant	Family:	Grossulariaceae
Author:	Pursh.	Botanical references:	11, 60, 200
Synonyms:	Ribes tenuiflorum (Lindl.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Western N. America - Saskatchewan to Washington, south to California. Naturalized in C. Europe.
Habitat:	By streams, in ravines and on mountain slopes[60, 62]. Rocky slopes and sandy bluffs[274].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	4	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Buffalo Currant [L], Golden Currant [P,FEIS,S,L,B], Missouri Currant [L],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	aureum = golden
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Rosales. Currant family

Physical Characteristics

A decidious shrub growing to 2.4m. It is hardy to zone 2 and is not frost tender. It is in flower in April, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 4/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Cultivar 'Gwen's': Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.
Cultivar 'Idaho': Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Flowers Fruit.

Fruit - raw or cooked[2, 11, 62, 101, 257]. They make an acceptable dessert fruit[K] and are also used in jellies, sauces and pies[183]. The fruit can also be dried for winter use[46, 85]. Fairly large and flavourful[85, 183]. The fruit is about 5mm in diameter[200].
Flowers - raw. A very sweet flavour[85].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Antiinflammatory Salve.

The dried and pulverized inner bark has been sprinkled on sores[257]. A decoction of the inner bark has been used in the treatment of leg swellings[257].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Easily grown in a moisture retentive but well-drained loamy soil of at least moderate quality[11]. Succeeds in full sun but is also quite tolerant of shade though not fruiting so well in such a position[11]. Grows well on exposed dry sites[85].
Very tolerant of being transplanted[85]. Plants can spread by means of underground rhizomes, especially when growing in moist conditions[164].
Hardy to about -20° c[200].
The fruit can be red, black, yellow, golden or reddish-brown[164].
A very ornamental plant[1], it is closely allied to R. odoratum[11].
Plants can harbour a stage of white pine blister rust, so should not be grown in the vicinity of pine trees[155]. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus[200].
Sometimes cultivated for its edible fruit, there are some named varieties[183].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 months cold stratification at -2 to _2° c and should be sown as early in the year as possible[113, 164]. Under normal storage conditions the seed can remain viable for 17 years or more. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter, planting them out in late spring of the following year
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 10 - 15cm with a heel, July/August in a frame[78, 113].
Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, preferably with a heel of the previous year's growth, November to February in a cold frame or sheltered bed outdoors[78, 200].

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers are deliciously clove-scented[245].

Cultivars

'Oregon Orange': An orange-fruited selection[183].
'Large Fruited': An improved selection with large fruit[183].
'Idaho': Large tear-drop shaped, blue-black fruits with a very good flavour[183]. Excellent for jellies, jams, wine and pies[183]. This cultivar is especially easy to harvest[183].
'Gwen's': A superior selection from the wild with long bluish-black fruits[183]. A productive, hardy and drought-resistant plant[183].

Suppliers

Plants For A Future is working with the following groups to try and make these plants easily available. Parts of the proceeds will be donated to so please mention us when ordering.

Cool Temperate Nurseries: 10 Ivy Grove
Nottingham
NG7 7LZ
Email: philcorbett53@hotmail.com
Phone 0115 847 8302 Fax 0115 847 8302
Distribution: UK
How to order: Direct from Cool Temperate by email/phone
Notes: Many Trees supplied on their own rootstock
Last Updated: April 03
Item: Ribes
Varities: Black Velvet

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[S] Image from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[62] Elias. T. and Dykeman. P. A Field Guide to N. American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold 1982 ISBN 0442222009
Very readable.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[85] Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9
A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.

[101] Turner. N. J. and Szczawinski. A. Edible Wild Fruits and Nuts of Canada. National Museum of Natural Sciences 1978
A very readable guide to some wild foods of Canada.

[113] Dirr. M. A. and Heuser. M. W. The Reference Manual of Woody Plant Propagation. Athens Ga. Varsity Press 1987 ISBN 0942375009
A very detailed book on propagating trees. Not for the casual reader.

[155] Arnberger. L. P. Flowers of the Southwest Mountains. Southwestern Monuments Ass. 1968
A lovely little pocket guide to wild plants in the southern Rockies of America.

[164] Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan. 1990
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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