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Plant Database

Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.

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Ribes lacustre (Prickly currant)
Glase, Terry

Ribes lacustre

Ribes lacustre (Pers.) Poir.

Prickly Currant

Grossulariaceae (Currant Family)

Synonym(s): Limnobotrya lacustris, Ribes lacustre var. parvulum, Ribes oxycanthoides var. lacustre

USDA Symbol: RILA

USDA Native Status: L48 (N), AK (N), CAN (N)

Thorny shrub.

 

From the Image Gallery

3 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Shrub
Leaf Retention: Deciduous
Leaf Arrangement: Alternate
Leaf Complexity: Simple
Breeding System: Flowers Bisexual
Fruit Type: Berry
Size Notes: Up to about 6 feet tall.
Fruit: Red, black or dark purple.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Pink , Yellow , Green , Brown
Bloom Time: May , Jun

Distribution

USA: AK , CA , CO , CT , ID , MA , ME , MI , MN , MT , NH , NJ , NV , NY , OR , PA , RI , SD , UT , VA , VT , WA , WI , WV , WY
Canada: AB , BC , MB , NB , NL , NS , ON , PE , QC , SK
Native Distribution: Alaska and Yukon across Canada east to Newfoundland; south to California and Colorado in the West, and to the Great Lakes and the Appalachians to Virginia in the East.
Native Habitat: Mountain streamsides, wet meadows, forests and woodlands.

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Sun , Part Shade , Shade
Soil Moisture: Moist , Wet
Conditions Comments: Not recommended; carries disease which kills white pine.

Benefit

Use Wildlife: The berries of this plant feed a wide variety of wildlife species, including Grizzly Bears, Elk, and Mountain Goats.
Attracts: Birds

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Find Seed or Plants

View propagation protocol from Native Plants Network.

National Wetland Indicator Status

Region:AGCPAKAWCBEMPGPHIMWNCNEWMVE
Status: FAC FACW FACW FACW FACW FACW FAC
This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.1 (Lichvar, R.W. 2013. The National Wetland Plant List: 2013 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2013-49: 1-241). Click here for map of regions.

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.
Webref 23 - Southwest Environmental Information Network (2009) SEINet - Arizona Chapter

Additional resources

USDA: Find Ribes lacustre in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Ribes lacustre in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Ribes lacustre

Metadata

Record Modified: 2023-04-05
Research By: TWC Staff

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