Mountain Gooseberry {Ribes Montigenum} Edible fruit bearing shrub 50+ seeds

Description

Mountain Gooseberry {Ribes Montigenum} Edible fruit bearing shrub 50+ seeds Free Shipping!
Habitat
Montane-alpine, slopes, meadows
Soil
coarse-loamy
Sun
partial shade
Annual Precip. (in)
24-36
USDA Zones
2-3
Height (ft)
1-4
Seeds per lb
325000
Germination Information
45 cool moist stratification or plant outside in the fall or winter. plant to 1/16 inch deep.
Ribes montigenum is a species of currant known by the common names mountain gooseberry,
alpine prickly currant, western prickly gooseberry, and gooseberry currant. It is native
to western North America from Washington south to California and east as far as the Rocky
Mountains, where it grows in high mountain habitat types in subalpine and alpine climates,
such as forests and talus. It is a spreading shrub growing up to 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall,
the branching stems covered in prickles and hairs and bearing 1 to 5 sharp spines at intervals.
The lightly hairy, glandular leaves are up to 4 centimeters (1.6 inches) long and are divided
into about five deeply cut or toothed lobes. Each is borne on a petiole several centimeters in
length. The inflorescence is a raceme of several flowers. Each flower has five sepals in shades
of yellow-green or pale pink, orange, or yellow which spread into a corolla-like star. At the
center are five smaller club-shaped red petals and purple-red stamens tipped with yellowish or
cream anthers. The fruit is an acidic but tasty bright-red to orange-red edible berry up to a
centimeter long, which is usually covered in soft bristles. It has only a small dried flower
remnant at the end, compared with the long remnant found on wax currants.
Ribes montigenum (Mountain Currant, Prickly Currant)
Grossulariaceae (Gooseberry Family)
Ribes montigenum
"Montigenum" (monti gene um) is from the Latin for "mountain born".  Ribes montigenum was first collected
in 1893 in the California Sierras by McClatchie and he named the plant in 1897.
Fall color is usually shades of yellow.
The dark hairs covering the berries might dissuade you from putting these fruits in your mouth, but the
hairs are soft and you won't even notice them as you enjoy the delicate sweetness of these abundant Ribes.
The hairs are the same ones you see surrounding the ovary at the base of the petals in several photographs
above. The hairs are glandular and undoubtedly their sticky secretions contribute to the pleasant flavor of
Ribes montigenum.
Germination
Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 - 10 months
cold stratification at about 0°c and should be sown as early in the year as possible 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.