Ribes multiflorum
Kit. ex Schult.
Manyflower Currant
(c) Robert Zimmermann, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Robert Zimmermann
(c) hanajos, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Lorenzo Cecchi (https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9706-0947), some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Fruit
The fruit, about 7mm in diameter, can be eaten raw or cooked and is well suited to making preserves.
Where to Find It
It is a temperate plant.
Albania, Asia, Balkans, China, Europe, Greece, Mediterranean*, Mexico,
How to Identify
A shrub. It grows 2 m tall. It does not have thorns. The leaves are almost round and 5-10 cm across. The fruit are dark red and a flattened round shape. They are 7-9 mm across.
How to Grow
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. This plant is a parent of some of the late-fruiting cultivars of red currants. 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.
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 can remain 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, then plant out in late spring the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 10–15cm with a heel, taken 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, taken November to February in a cold frame or sheltered bed outdoors.
Medicinal Uses
None known
Other Uses
None known
Wikipedia
Ribes multiflorum is a deciduous shrub growing to 2 m tall. It flowers April to May, reaching hermaphroditic maturity with insect pollination. Hardy to UK zone 6 and USDA zones indicated. Tolerates light, medium, or heavy well-drained soils with mildly acid to basic pH. Can grow in semi-shade or full sun and prefers moist conditions.
Other Information
It is cultivated.
Notes
There are about 150 Ribes species.
Names & Synonyms
Uvilla
References (9)
- Flora of China @ efloras.org Volume 8
- Keep, E., 1979, Currants, in Simmonds N.W.,(ed), Crop Plant Evolution. Longmans. London. p 145
- Pieroni, A. et al, 2014, Resilience at the border: traditional botanical knowledge among Macedonians and Albanian living in Gollobordo, Eastern Albania. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine. 10:31
- Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
- Segura, S., et al, 2018, The edible fruit species in Mexico. Genet Resour Crop Evol (2018) 65:1767–1793
- Sfikas, G., 1984, Trees and shrubs of Greece. Efstathiadis Group. Athens. p 58
- Syst. veg. 5:493. 1819
- van Wyk, B., 2005, Food Plants of the World. An illustrated guide. Timber press. p 322
- Zeven, A. C. & de West, J. M. J., 1982, Dictionary of cultivated plants and their regions of diversity. Wageningen. p 112
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