262 NEBRASKA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Tliis is generally supposed to be a form of the European black- 

 berry, tliough its origin is somewhat in doubt. It has long been 

 known in cultivation in the United States. It is reported to be very 

 productive in England and in certain parts of our own country, par- 

 ticularly on the northwest coast. As a general rule, however, it is a 

 complete failure so far as fruit production is concerned, and can be 

 recommended only for its ornamental qualities, which are due to the 

 peculiar character of its foliage. It has hailed from the west at times 

 as the Oregon Evergreen, Sandwich Island, and Nevada blackberry. 



The Currant and Goosebery Family. 



The genus Ribes, to which belong the currants and gooseberries, is a 

 large genus, and primarily an American one, being much more largely 

 represented on this continent than in the old world. Unlike the 

 genus Rubus, it is not a member of the Hose family, but belongs to 

 the Saxifrage family. The species are so numerous that it would be 

 wholly impracticable to attempt to discuss them all here. Only those 

 will be touched upon, therefore, which are known to be in cultivation, 

 and it is quite possible that some of those not touched upon are also 

 cultivated to some extent. 



ribes. 



§ 1. Stems with one to three thorns below the clusters of leaves, often 



with numerous scattered prickles on the branches, sometimes 



upon the berry also. Leaves plaited in the bud. (Gooseberries.) 



Ribes speciosum Pursh. — Fuchsia-Flowered Gooseberry. — 



This species is quite distinct from all other members of the genus, in 



that thfc flowers are long, red, and showy. The stamens are two or 



three times as long as the flower itself, giving it some resemblance to 



a fuchsia. The thorns are long and slender, the leaves small and 



shining, three-lobed, with coarse rounded serrations, and narrowed at 



the base. The berry is prickly and few seeded. The species is foimd 



on the Pacific coast from California northward into British Columbia. 



It is planted in a limited way as an ornamental, and is said to be 



prized in England for growing against walls. It certainly seems 



worthy a place among ornamental plants. 



Ribes oxyacanthoides Linn. — Common Gooseberry. — In this spe- 

 cies the flowers are small and yellowish-green in color, the calyx tube 



