Ribes warszewiczii
Jancz.
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Juan Carlos Fonseca Mata (via Wikimedia Commons)
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Grégoire VINCKE (via Wikimedia Commons)
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Jason Hollinger (via Wikimedia Commons)
Summary
Source: WikipediaA deciduous shrub growing to 1.5 m with hermaphrodite flowers pollinated by insects and blooming April to May. Hardy to UK zone 3 and not frost tender. Adapts to light sandy, medium loamy, or heavy clay soils with good drainage. Tolerates mildly acidic to basic soil pH. Can grow in semi-shade or full sun and prefers moist soil.
Description
A deciduous shrub growing to 1.5 m with hermaphrodite flowers pollinated by insects and blooming April to May. Hardy to UK zone 3 and not frost tender. Adapts to light sandy, medium loamy, or heavy clay soils with good drainage. Tolerates mildly acidic to basic soil pH. Can grow in semi-shade or full sun and prefers moist soil.
Edible Uses
The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked and works well in preserves. This red currant has a very pleasant sharp flavour and fruits reliably in Britain. When fully ripe, the berries are an attractive dark red and measure up to 10mm in diameter. Like other red currants, the fruit contains a fairly large number of seeds.
Medicinal Uses
None known.
Distribution
It is a cool temperate plant.
Where It Grows
Russia, Siberia,
Cultivation
Easily grown in a moisture retentive but well-drained loamy soil of at least moderate quality. Plants are quite tolerant of shade though do not fruit so well in such a position. 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. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus. This species is closely allied to R. spicatum. Along with R. petraeum and R. rubrum, this species is one of the parents of the cultivated red currants.
Propagation
Seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe in autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 months of cold stratification at 0–5°C and should be sown as early in the year as possible. Under normal storage conditions seed remains viable for 17 years or more. Prick out seedlings into individual pots when large enough to handle, grow on in a cold frame through their first winter, and plant out in late spring the following year. Take cuttings of half-ripe wood, 10–15cm with a heel, in July or August in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood from the current year's growth, preferably with a heel of the previous year's growth, can be taken from November to February in a cold frame or sheltered outdoor bed.
Other Uses
None known.
Notes
There are about 150 Ribes species.
Synonyms
References (2)
- Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
- M. L. Vilmorin & D. G. J. M. Bois, Frutic. vilmor. 1:133, cum t. 1904
