Alpine Currant
Ribes alpinum
Family: Grossulariaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: Green, Yellow. Main Bloom Time: Early spring, Late spring, Mid spring. Form: Spreading or horizontal, Upright or erect.
Ribes alpinum is a deciduous Shrub growing to 1.2 m (4ft) by 1 m (3ft 3in) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 2 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from April to May, and the seeds ripen from July to August. The species is dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required). and is pollinated by Flies, bees. The plant is not self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in nutritionally poor soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 1.2
Where it is found
Cliffs and rocky woods on limestone.
Europe, including Britain, from Scandanavia south and east to N. Africa, Italy, Montenegro, Bulgaria
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
Africa, Asia, Australia, Balkans, Bosnia, Britain, Estonia, Europe, Finland, Georgia, Hungary, Morocco, North Africa, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Tasmania,
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Fruit - raw or cooked. Sweet and not very acid, but less palatable than R. rubrum, the red currant. An insipid fruit, it is not palatable. The only fruits we have eaten have been good size red currants with a fair flavour. The fruit is about 5mm in diameter and can be freely borne when male and female plants are grown.
Medicine
Rating: 0
Other
Rating: 4
The cultivar 'Green Mound' makes a good dwarf hedge. Plants can be grown as a tall ground cover when spaced about 2 metres apart each way. The cultivars 'Aureum' and 'Pumilum' are smaller growing and should be spaced about 1 metre apart.
Hedge: Plants that can be grown as hedges.
Ground cover: Ground Cover
Hedge: Hedge
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Erosion control, Foundation, Ground cover, Massing, Rock garden, Seashore. Easily grown in a moisture retentive but well-drained loamy soil of at least moderate quality. This species succeeds on poor soils. Does well in shade though it does not fruit so well in such a position. A very hardy plant, tolerating temperatures down to about -25°c. A number of named varieties have been developed for their ornamental value. The flowers are sweetly fragrant. Plants are dioecious. At least one male plant must be grown in the vicinity of up to 5 females if fruit is required. Plants can harbour a stage of white pine blister rust, so should not be grown in the vicinity of pine trees. Plants in this genus are notably susceptible to honey fungus. Special Features: Not North American native, Inconspicuous flowers or blooms.
Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in the autumn in a cold frame. Stored seed requires 3 months cold stratification at 0 - 9°c and should be sown as early in the year as possible. Under normal storage conditions the seed can remain viable for 17 years or more. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in a cold frame for their first winter, planting them out in late spring of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 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, November to February in a cold frame or sheltered bed outdoors.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge; Dappled Shade; Ground Cover; Hedge;
Habit: Shrub
Hardiness: 2-7
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
Its other names
Local names
Adil nouchen, Inalad, Leanykafuge, Mage sostar, Mammuspuu, Naestomari, Planinska ribizla, Qars-momou, Taghmamoucht, Vad ribizli,