Missouri Gooseberry (Ribes missouriense)
Estimated Height at Pickup: 2-3’, 1 gal
A low growing native shrub with edible berries and lovely fall foliage! Prefers part shade in hotter climates, but fruits best when in full sun and irrigated regularly (overhead watering not recommended). Prefers average, well drained soils. Old stems are densely thorny.
Pollination: 2+ individuals recommended.
Light: Full Sun, Part Sun/Shade
Soil Moisture: Mesic, Dry Mesic
Soil Type: Loamy, Rocky
Height: 2’-4’
Width: 2’-4’
Bloom Color: White
Bloom Time: Apr-May
Fruit: Green berries mature to red/purple in the summer.
Fall Color: Red/Brown
Root Type: Branching
Notable Wildlife Interactions: Flowers attract mostly bees, and occasionally flies, moths, and butterflies. Hosts the green comma and grey comma butterflies, as well as a few moths, plant bugs, leaf beetles, leafhoppers, and smaller insects. Berries are eaten by birds such as thrushes, robins, bluebirds, towhee, bobwhite, and waxwings, as well as mammals like black bear, raccoons, and mice. New growth is occasionally browsed by deer.