Think of Ribes aureum var. aureum as the non-fragrant western form and R. aureum var. villosum as the fragrant form found more or less east of the Rocky Mountain front to Nebraska and somewhat beyond. California has, in addition to var. aureum, its own Coast Range subspecies, var. gracillimum which sounds less hardy but delicious. The western form var. aureum is adapted more to the semi-arid steppe and intermountain country of the American west, while var. villosum is adapted to the great plains. The only available nursery cultivars that I know of in America are Crandall from 1888 and Gwen's Buffalo Currant, which is a selection from Wyoming. Both of these are selections of R. aureum var. villosum. Crandall is a particularly large fruited form which is reported to be disease resistant and hardy. Variety aureum might not thrive so well in more humid climates but it is well adapted to cold, heat, and drought. The plant is reported to have a long deep taproot. Check out the nafex discussions on Crandall Currant, Golden Currant, Buffalo Currant, Clove Currant, Ribes odoratum, villosum, and aureum. There is a lot of good information there mainly from around ten years ago. You may actually have better luck finding cultivars in Europe. There is a Swiss guy and firm just recently marketing R. aureum as what he calls "Fourberry". You can find him on Youtube. This is probably derived from var. villosum. I would guess it is patented. If you find it available in UK I would be interested in your report. The berries look very large and black but he says an orange form will come out soon. Ribes aureum var. aureum in the western USA must have a tremendous level of variety in flavors, colors, and local adaptations but it seems to have been totally neglected by plant breeders in spite of its very good flavors. Even var. villosum has little to show but those two cultivars, which are simply selections and not really improved since. Crandall is often marketed as an ornamental currant (Clove Currant) on account of those showy flowers with their spicy clove-like fragrance. Reports on the flavor or Crandall are generally pretty good, with most people finding the fruit quite good and the yield high. Europeans seem to prefer the stronger flavors of the European black currant however. Those European black currants are certainly the best for cooking with. This is mostly just information that I have found online, but I do have my own local form of Ribes aureum var. aureum here with orange berries which actually seem to taste like oranges to me. The berries are only about 1 cm large but pretty good eating and quite unlike any other currant that I have ever eaten. Having found no record of anyone ever even attempting a cross between var. villosum and var. aureum, several years ago I crossed Crandall with my orange fruited native variety. The resulting plant bloomed heavily this season with a very good fragrance. It does show intermediate features, seems vigorous, and set a good crop of berries. I am quite curious just how these berries will turn out later in the summer. Further amateur breeding is in the works, which is why I am so interested in Fabaceae_native's report on his NM forms of Ribes aureum. Those diverse colors, large fruit, good flavors, and particularly that trait of the withered flowers falling free are very interesting and attractive.

Greenthumbz, those are gorgeous pics! I've heard that there are a couple of trees that are not native to North America but are used by significant numbers of native insects. 1) Malus/Crabapples - native, hybrid, or exotic, Douglas Tallamy's book stated that the leaf chemistry is so similar that North american insects will use all species. This certainly bears true in my experience. I've got lots of crabs, a few specimens and a crazy wild thicket full of them in back,and they are bird magnets, not just for the fruits in the fall but for the nectar and insects in spring and summer. 2) Picea abies/Norway spruce - don't have any personal experience, but was told this by an ornithology student at Cornell who was doing a study on the subject

Okay, I FINALLY got my lists together! Sorry for the wait folks, but things have been soo busy these last few weeks! Here's what I have for the swap: Plants: *Apple Red Delicious seedling: Perennial, FS & WD soil. *Canna "Yellow King Humbert/Robert Wallace(these got mixed up & cant tell apart until bloom time):Perennial, FS & moist. Yellow & red blooms. *Castor Bean -Red(R. communis 'Carmencita' ): Per. in zones 8-11, FS & WD. Grows fast, red blooms. *Seeds are poisonous. *Coleus (C. blumei) seedlings: Annual/Tender Perennial or houseplant. PS & moist, WD soil. *Crown of Thorns (Euphorbia Milii): Perennial succulent zone 9-11 or houseplant. F/P sun & moderate water. Red blooms. *Daylily (Hemerocallis): Perennial-all zones, F/P sun & moist, WD soil. Orange blooms. *Desert Rose (Adenium obesum) seedlings-Pink: Perennial succulent zone 9-10, or houseplant. FS & moderate water. *Hosta T-Rex: Perennial zone 3-9, Part/morning sun & moist, WD soil. To 30" high. *Hoya Fungii: Perennial houseplant. PS, WD soil. White bloom w/burgundy throat. Fragrant. Hanging basket. *Hibiscus Sunset seedling: Perennial zone 9-10, FS & WD soil. Red & gold bloom. *Paperwhite/Chinese Sacred Lily (Narcissus): Perennial zone 8-11, F/P sun & WD soil. *Plumeria (P. rubra) seedling: Perennial, small succulent tree or container plant. zone 9-11, FS & dry soil. *Spider Plant Variegated (Chlorophytum comosum): Perennial. Houseplant or outdoors in Part sun. White blooms. Cuttings: *Purple Queen (Tradescantia pallida): Perennial zone 8-11, F/P sun, moist -dry. Pink blooms, groundcover or hanging basket. *Purple Jew (Zebrina pendula): Perennial, Part/morning sun. Hanging basket/houseplant. Bulbs/Tubers: *Air Potato Vine(Dioscorea bulbifera): Perennial zone 9-11, F/P sun, drought tolerant. Native to Asia & Africa. ...for my wants, please see my trade list. It was completely updated yesterday.... Here are my answers to the questionaire... About my Garden: a Which of these best describes your DREAM garden: All of the above (including 'Much larger!, LOL) b Which of these describes your REAL garden Chaotic c. What is your garden colour scape All of the above d. My biggest challenge in the garden is: All of the above e. My garden is Non of the above- sunny & tree roots! f. I know I am a plant-aholic because...... I get dirtier than the kids when we go outside to 'play' and if weather's bad/cold, I bring the dirt indoors! Thanks Frances for being patient with me, and thanks for hosting this swap! Here is a link that might be useful: Chellflower's Trade Lists

I'm surprised! We got down to -16F here, and I'm not seeing much damage. Blackberries, yes, some, but I protected them and will have a decent harvest this year. I have Cascade Gold, Taylor, Prelude, and Encore and I'm not seeing any damage. Hard to tell right now, They are all still very dormant. the only damage I see is on my Allen black, and only on some laterals. Low tonight is 19F, still waiting for spring to arrive here. My plants are mature though, and throw numerous canes each spring. I kept all my canes to the everbearing and they look fine too. My only thought is they are staying wet, or they are not well fed. Otherwise I'm not sure why you are having problems?