Ribes glandulosum, or the skunk currant, is a North American species of flowering plant in the currant family.
Description Ribes glandulosum is a deciduous shrub growing to tall and wide. The leaves are wide, palmately lobed with 5–7 deeply cut segments. Flowers are in elongated clusters of 6–15 pink flowers. Fruits are dark red and egg-shaped, sometimes palatable but sometimes not.United States Department of Agriculture plants profilePlants for a FutureFlora of North America, Ribes glandulosum Grauer, 1784. Skunk currant, gadellier glanduleux
Distribution and habitat It is widespread in Canada (all 10 provinces and all 3 territories) and is also found in parts of the United States (Alaska, the Great Lakes region, the Appalachian Mountains, and the Northeast).Biota of North America Program 2014 state-level distribution mapBiota of North America Program 2014 county distribution map It can be found in humid forests, shrub thickets, clearings, and on rocky slopes.
As a noxious weed It is considered a noxious weed in Michigan, and planting it is prohibited in certain parts of the state.
Conservation Ribes glandulosum has been assessed as least concern on the IUCN Red List. It is listed as endangered in Connecticut and New Jersey, and presumed extirpated in Ohio.
Uses The Ojibwe people take a compound decoction of the root for back pain and for "female weakness".Densmore, Frances 1928 Uses of Plants by the Chippewa Indians. SI-BAE Annual Report #44:273–379 (p. 356) The Woods Cree use a decoction of the stem, either by itself or mixed with wild red raspberry, to prevent clotting after birth, eat the berries as food, and use the stem to make a bitter tea.Leighton, Anna L. 1985 Wild Plant Use by the Woods Cree (Nihithawak) of East-Central Saskatchewan. Ottawa. National Museums of Canada. Mercury Series (p. 54) The Algonquin people use the berries as food.Black, Meredith Jean 1980 Algonquin Ethnobotany: An Interpretation of Aboriginal Adaptation in South Western Quebec. Ottawa. National Museums of Canada. Mercury Series Number 65 (p. 88)
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