Edward Robson

Ribes spicatum, the downy currant or Nordic currant, is a species of shrub in the family Grossulariaceae, native to northern Europe and northern Asia. Its bright red berries are edible and quite good‑tasting. It can be differentiated from the more common redcurrant (Ribes rubrum) not so much by its leaf hairs, as these tend to fall off as the leaf ages, but by other characteristics: the leaves of R. spicatum are a duller and darker green than R. rubrum with its paler yellowish‑green leaves. R. spicatum holds its leaves at a right angle to the stem, whereas R. rubrum leaves are less erect,