Ribes californicum var. californicum

California gooseberry

Family: Grossulariaceae · Type: shrub · Native

California gooseberry is a native shrub found in northern Coast Ranges, San Francisco Bay Area, and southern Coast Ranges in forest openings and woodland at elevations below 720 meters. Flowering from February to March, this plant produces green or red-tinged flowers with distinctive long filaments. Growing with an upright, branching form reaching several feet tall, it develops a multi-stemmed structure typical of woodland shrubs. Its leaves are sparsely hairy or nearly glabrous, presenting a smooth green surface that blends into woodland understories. The fruit is a characteristic gooseberry, though specific details are not provided in the available description.

Habitat: Forest openings, woodland

Bloom period: Feb-Mar

Elevation: < 720 m

Bioregions: NCoR, SnFrB, SCoR.

California counties: Los Angeles, Riverside, Lake, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Monterey, Sonoma, Santa Clara, Mendocino, Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, San Luis Obispo, Napa, San Benito, Tehama, San Francisco, Amador, Kern, Calaveras, Ventura

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.