Currant

(botany) A shrubby, deciduous plant of the genus Ribes in the order Rosales; the edible fruit, a berry, is borne in clusters on the plant.

A fruit (berry) in the genus Ribes in the family Saxifragaceae. Cultivated black and red currants and gooseberries all belong to this genus. Ribes species having prickles or spines are called gooseberries, and those that do not are called currants. The berries are produced in clusters on bushes, and cultivars ripen in midsummer.

Ribes are not widely grown commercially for fruit in the United States, but red currants and gooseberries are popular in home gardens for use in jellies and pies. Several Ribes species, particularly golden currant (R. aureum) and fuchsia-flowered gooseberry (R. speciosum), are used as shrubs in landscaping. In Europe cultivars of the black currant (R. nigrum) are extensively grown commercially for juice concentrate. Wild Ribes species occur widely in the United States, and desirable, edible types are sometimes gathered during the season when the fruit is locally abundant. See also Gooseberry; Rosales.