Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Email
Answers.com

Currant

 
(′kər·ənt)

(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.


Search unanswered questions...
Enter a question here...
Search: All sources Community Q&A Reference topics

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.


Shopping: Currant
Top
 
 
Learn More
ribes
buffalo currant
cassis (culinary)

Who is currantly fired from WWE? Read answer...
When are red currants ripe? Read answer...
Can black currant drinks poison you? Read answer...

Help us answer these
What is the definition of currant?
What is currant electricity?
What are thermal currants?

Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:

 

Copyrights:

Sci-Tech Dictionary. McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms. Copyright © 2003, 1994, 1989, 1984, 1978, 1976, 1974 by McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Sci-Tech Encyclopedia. McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology. Copyright © 2005 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more