Golden Currant

Ribes aureum

Also known as Golden Currant, Clove Currant, Buffalo Currant, Missouri Currant

At a glance

Family

Grossulariaceae (Currant family)

Type

Deciduous flowering shrub

Parts used

Berries (fruit), flowers

Size

3 to 6 feet tall, sometimes taller along good water

Bloom

Early to mid spring, before most neighbors wake up

Habitat

Streambanks, canyon bottoms, and dry rocky slopes across the western and central United States

Acquisition

Grow or forage

Traditional remedies in HerbSense

Key benefits

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Rich in vitamin C

Antioxidant-rich amber berries

Supports traditional foodways

Draws pollinators and birds

Traditional uses

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Golden currant has fed people across the American West for generations. More than a dozen Native nations, including the Shoshone, Paiute, Navajo, and Cheyenne, gathered the ripe berries to eat fresh, dry for winter, or pound together with fat and meat into pemmican. Meriwether Lewis collected and described the shrub in 1806, struck by its fragrant, clove-scented blossoms. Because it thrived along the same waterways travelers depended on, golden currant became a reliable, welcome taste of sweetness on long journeys.

How to grow & use it

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Traditional remedies and step-by-step preparations, a complete growing guide, and how to harvest, dry, and store it, all unlocked with HerbLens Unlimited.

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✦ Growing guide
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Pairs well with

✦Rose hips
✦Elderberry
✦Wild mint

Substitutes

✦Black currant
✦Red currant

Choose it when

“For a taste of the old West, sweet and a little wild, gathered along a creek in the heat of summer.”

Did you know?

Golden currant's spring flowers give off a spicy, clove-like fragrance so distinct that early botanists and travelers, including Meriwether Lewis, singled it out in their notes long before anyone thought to describe the berries themselves.

Safety

Ripe golden currant berries are safe to eat, but the unripe berries and leaves are not eaten and can cause stomach upset.