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 velutinum purple. Ribes velutinum Ribes velutinum is a species of currant known by the common name desert gooseberry. It is endemic to the deserts and mountains of the Western United States. It is native to areas in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Nevada, California, and Arizona), It grows in many types of habitat, including sagebrush scrub, pinyon-juniper woodland, and yellow pine forest. "Ribes velutinum" is a spreading shrub with a thick, arching, multibranched stem growing up to 2 meters (80 inches) long. Nodes along the stems are armed with spines which may reach 2 centimeters (0.8 inch) in length. These are