Idaho Gooseberry (Ribes irriguum)

Idaho Gooseberry (Ribes irriguum)
Wikimedia Commons — Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. 3 vols. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. Vol. 2: 240. Courtesy of Kentucky Native Plant Society. Scanned by Omnitek Inc. — Public domain

At a glance

Lifecycle
Perennial (hardy)
Exposure
Full sun

Cultivation

Easily grown in a moisture retentive but well-drained loamy soil of at least moderate quality. Hardy to about -20°c. Plants can harbour a stage of 'white pine blister rust', so they should not be grown in the vicinity of pine trees.

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 between 0 to 5°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. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 10 - 15cm with a heel, July/August in a frame. 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.

Edible uses

Fruit - raw or cooked.

Medicinal uses

A decoction of the root has been used as a tonic for the stomach.

Habitat

Moist to dry canyons and open to wooded hillsides.

Native range

North-western N. America - southwards from British Columbia.

Same genus