Skunk Currant


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Skunk Currant, Ribes glandulosum Grauer
Saxifragaceae

Height: A reclining or sprawling shrub.

Twigs: Stems are smooth, gray or brownish, and without prickles.

Buds: Reddish and have less than 5 scales.

Leaves: Alternate, palmately veined, divided into 5 lobes, usually double-toothed and 5-8 cm wide. The uppersurface is green and smooth (rarely with a few hairs), the undersurface being light green or whitened and with fine hairs. The leaves are heart-shaped at the base.

Flowers: White or reddish, in erect clusters (racemes), 2.5-5 cm long. There are 5 petals and 5 stamens. The flower stalks and the calyx are covered with glandular hairs. Blooms from mid-May to June.

Fruit: Bristly red berries, 6 mm in diameter, borne in drooping clusters. They are edible. Ripen in late July.

Habitat: Found in wet woods, swampy areas, clearings and rocky slopes, throughout Newfoundland and most of Labrador. This is the most common wild Ribes of this area

Source: Native Trees and Shrubs
of Newfoundland and Labrador
By A. Glen Ryan

Used with permission from
Parks and Natural Areas Division
Department of Environment and Conservation
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador 1995


 

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