Ribes punctatum

What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit

The fruit, a blackcurrant, can be eaten raw or cooked.

Where to Find It

It is a warm temperate plant. In Chile it grows between 500-2,000 m above sea level. It can tolerate dry periods. It grows where the winter rainfall is 400-800 mm. It grows in full sun. It can tolerate some shade. It suits hardiness zone 9. It can tolerate some frost but not snow.

Argentina, Bolivia, Chile*, Ecuador, Peru, South America*,

How to Identify

A small shrub. It grows 60 cm high. The flowers are yellow. They have 5 petals. The fruit are 6-8 mm across.

How to Grow

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain, though judging by its native range it could succeed outdoors at least in the milder parts of this country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus. 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. 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 between 0 and 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 and grow on in a cold frame for their first winter, planting 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 of the current year's growth, preferably with a heel of the previous year's growth, can be taken November to February in a cold frame or sheltered bed outdoors.

Medicinal Uses

None known

Other Uses

None known

An evergreen shrub with year-round foliage, flowering April to May. Insect-pollinated and tolerates light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils with good drainage. Grows in semi-shade to full sun and prefers consistently moist soil. Suitable for mildly acidic to mildly alkaline conditions.

Notes

There are about 150 Ribes species.

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