Ribes inerme

White-stemmed gooseberry

Family: Grossulariaceae · Type: shrub · Native

White-stemmed gooseberry is a California native shrub found in rocky or woodland habitats, typically scrambling through understory vegetation. Flowering from spring to early summer, this plant produces delicate white flowers with green-white sepals that have a subtle purple base. Growing to less than 3 meters tall with distinctive white to gray stem tips and occasional nodal spines, it develops an open, sprawling form. Its leaves are relatively small, about 2 to 3 centimeters wide, with coarse tooth-like edges and a simple, rounded shape. The fruit develops as a smooth, purple berry approximately 7 to 11 millimeters long, adding subtle color to its woodland habitat.

California counties: Humboldt, El Dorado, Placer, Fresno, Tulare, Inyo, Madera, Plumas, Mono, Tuolumne, Butte, Modoc, Tehama, Nevada, Trinity, Shasta, Alpine

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