Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses - Missouri gooseberry

MISSOURI GOOSEBERRY

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Ribes missouriense Nutt.

Konza Prairie, Riley County, Kansas

Shrub

Height: 3-6 feet

Family: Grossulariaceae - Currant Family

Flowering Period: April, May

Stems:

Erect; branches arching, armed at nodes with 1-4, stiff, red to brown spines, 1/3 to 2/3 inch long; bark gray, splitting on older branches.

Leaves:

Alternate, simple, stalked, circular in outline, deeply 3-5 lobed, 1 to 2.5 inches long, almost as wide, nearly glabrous above, softly hairy below; margins toothed; often clustered on short, lateral branches.

Inflorescences:

Solitary or clusters of 2-4 flowers; stalks slender, 2/5 to 4/5 inch long.

Flowers:

To 1/2 inch long, white to pale greenish, drooping; sepals 5, linear-oblong, erect early but later bent conspicuously outwards or backwards; petals 5, forming tube around stamens; stamens 5, filaments protruding, about 3 times longer than petals.

Fruits:

Berries, spherical, less than 1/2 inch in diameter, smooth, purplish; seeds numerous, egg-shaped, smooth, black.

Habitat:

Open rocky woods, thickets, and woodland edges.

Distribution:

East 2/3 of Kansas.

Uses:

Missouri gooseberry provides food and cover for birds and wildlife. Native Americans ate the fruits fresh or dried during the winter. The berries sometimes are used in pies and jams.

Missouri gooseberry flowers