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Chaparral Currant
Ribes malvaceum var. malvaceum
  
About Chaparral Currant (Ribes malvaceum var. malvaceum) 3 Nurseries Carry This Plant This is one of two recognized varieties of Chaparral Currant (Ribes malvaceum). The other is var. viridifolium. Both are known by the same common name. Their ranges are somewhat different but overlapping. Var. Malvaceum is found primarily in the central Coast Ranges from Tehama County to Orange County. Var. viridifolium is found along the coast from Santa Barbara County to San Diego County and northern Baja. For further details see the entry for Ribes malvaceum.

Ribes malvaceum (Montara Rose), Chaparral Currant
Description
Ribes malvaceum, called "chaparral currant", is a member of the gooseberry family. It is endemic to California. This selection from Montara Mountain grows 4 to 6 ft. tall and has deep pink flowers clusters in the spring that produce edible purple berries. It can handle part shade to full sun, and is one of the earliest ribes to start blooming -- often in late winter. Popular with hummingbirds.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
3 - 5 ft tall
3 - 5 ft wide

Form
Form
Spreading

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Fast

Dormancy
Dormancy
Summer Deciduous, Winter Deciduous

Fragrance
Fragrance
Fragrant - Pleasant

Flower Color
Flower Color
Pink, White

Wildlife Supported
 
Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 69 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Part Shade

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 2x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 34 - 96° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium

Soil Description
Soil Description
Medium and coarse, dry. Soil PH: 5.8 - 8.2

Common uses
Common uses
Bird Gardens, Hummingbird Gardens, Butterfly Gardens, Bee Gardens

Maintenance
Maintenance
Prune during dry season or after fruiting. Avoid cutting into old wood.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
6, 7*, 8, 9, 14*, 15*, 16*, 17*, 18*, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22*, 23*, 24*

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Oak woodlands, closed cone pine forests, chaparral

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 8.6" - 37.5", Summer Precipitation: 0.15" - 0.78", Coldest Month: 41.7" - 57.2", Hottest Month: 62.7" - 78.5", Humidity: 0.86" - 27.96", Elevation: 36" - 4313"


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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