Ribes americanum is a shrub growing 0.5 to 1.5 meters (20-60 inches) in height. The branches are erect and bear deciduous leaves. There are no spines. The plant may form thickets.[9] The glandular leaves are up to 7–8 cm (3–3 in) long and have 3 or 5 lobes. They turn red and gold in the fall.[9][3][10]
The inflorescence is a spreading or drooping raceme of up to 15 flowers. Each flower has reflexed white or greenish sepals a few millimeters long and smaller whitish petals. The fruit is a smooth rounded black berry about a centimeter (0.4 inch) wide and edible when cooked.[3] The plant reproduces mostly by seed.[10]
Distribution and habitat
This shrub is native to the United States and Canada where grows in a variety of ecosystems. It occurs in many types of forests and in conifer bogs. In Manitoba it can be found in marshes. In the Great Lakes region it grows abundantly in sedge meadows (Carex spp.). Ribes americanum grows on plains and in mountains and sometimes in disturbed areas such as roadsides. It is also shade-tolerant, growing in the understory of closed-canopy woodlands and forests.[10]
This plant is an alternate host for the white pine blister rust (Cronartium ribicola), the vector of a pine tree disease. It is sometimes eradicated in attempts to control the rust.[10]
The cluster cup rust (Puccinia caricina) forms aecia on the leaves of Ribes americanum in the spring, later developing brown blotches of pustules.[4] The telia are formed on sedges (Carex).[4]
Uses
Native Americans made pemmican from the berries,[12] which are also known for being made into jam and jelly.[10]
^ abcdWilhelm, Gerould; Rericha, Laura (2017). Flora of the Chicago Region: A Floristic and Ecological Synthesis. Indiana Academy of Sciences.
^Reznicek, A. A.; Voss, E. G.; Walters, B. S., eds. (February 2011). "Ribesamericanum". Michigan Flora Online. University of Michigan Herbarium. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
^USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Ribes americanum". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
^"Ribes americanum". Go Botany. New England Wildflower Society. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
^"Ribes americanum". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). 2014.
^ abcdeMarshall, K. Anna (1995). "Ribes americanum". Fire Effects Information System (FEIS). US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service (USFS), Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory. Retrieved January 20, 2012.