Common Name: White-Flowered Currant

General Information

Ribes laxiflorum is a deciduous shrub. Growing in an open position the stems are usually decumbent or spreading, often rooting where they touch the ground, and growing 50 - 100cm long. When growing in shade, however, the stems adopt a more climbing habit, growing up to 7 metres long and scrambling into the surrounding vegetation[].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and a medicine. It is occasionally grown as an ornamental[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

, ,

Range

Western N. America - Alaska and Yukon, south to California and New Mexico

Habitat

Moist woods, stream banks, forest edges, clearings, avalanche tracks; at elevations up to 2,600 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Habit	Deciduous Shrub
Height	0.80 m
Pollinators	Insects
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Ribes laxiflorum is very cold hardy, when dormant it can tolerate temperatures falling to around -20°c[].
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[].
White pine blister rust, caused by the pathogen Cronartium ribicola, is a fungal disease that is native to Asia but has spread via human activity to many other regions, where it has become more virulent. It has a complex life-cycle that requires both currants (Ribes species) and white pines (Pinus species of the section Strobus) for the disease to spread. Whilst Ribes species can generally live with the disease (it has an annual life-cycle and infects the leaves only) Pinus species can be devastated by it (it becomes perennial and spreads through the tree). Young pines are far more susceptible than mature trees. In America the growing of certain Ribes species is banned in some areas in order to protect plantations of white pine species.
Plants in this genus tend to be notably susceptible to honey fungus[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked[, , , ]. Palatable, but not very juicy[]. The fruit can be dried and stored for later use[] or made into jelly[]. The purplish-black, ovoid fruit is usually 5 - 10mm long, though it can be up to 14mm; it is borne in small racemes[, ].

Medicinal

A decoction or infusion of the root or branches can be used each day as an eyewash to remove foreign matter from the eyes[].

A decoction of the leaves and twigs has been used as a general tonic[].

A decoction of the bark has been used in the treatment of colds[].

A decoction of the bark and roots has been used as a treatment for tuberculosis[].

Other Uses

None known

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 and 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, mid summer in a frame[, ].
Cuttings of mature wood of the current year's growth, preferably with a heel of the previous year's growth, late autumn to late winter in a cold frame or sheltered bed outdoors[, ].