Ribes Ribes Ribes is a genus of about 150 known species of flowering plants native throughout the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It is usually treated as the only genus in the family Grossulariaceae, but a few taxonomists place the gooseberry species in a separate genus of "Grossularia". Sometimes "Ribes" is instead included in the family Saxifragaceae. The genus "Ribes" includes the edible currants (blackcurrant, redcurrant, white currant), the gooseberry, and several hybrid varieties. It should not be confused with the dried currant used in cakes and puddings, which is a small-fruited cultivar of grape (Zante currant). "Ribes" gives its
Ribes lacustre Ribes lacustre The shrub Ribes lacustre is known by the common names prickly currant, black swamp gooseberry, and black gooseberry. It is widely distributed, from California to Alaska and across North America east to Pennsylvania and Newfoundland, and south as far as New Mexico. The shrub grows erect to spreading, 0.5–2 m. Clusters of reddish to maroon flowers bloom in spring. The fruit consists of dark purple berries 6–8 mm long. It blooms in April through August and may be found in low-elevation forests to the subalpine. Outside its native range, "Ribes" species may be invasive. For example, in Michigan,