Golden Currant

Year-round

Golden currant grows in the Santa Monica and San Gabriel foothills and canyons around Los Angeles, and Calscape lists it as native to that part of the Southern California chaparral region. It handles clay or sandy soil, wants full sun near the coast and part shade inland, and only needs occasional deep watering once it is established. Golden yellow flowers open in winter and spring and draw hummingbirds and native bees, and ripe berries feed birds through summer. True currants in the Ribes genus, unlike the small dried Zante currants sold in stores, are not linked to the kidney toxicity seen in grape and raisin poisoning in dogs.

• Plant in full sun along the coast, part shade inland, in well drained soil.
• Water deeply every one to two weeks the first year, then cut back to an occasional soak once established.
• Expect winter and spring flowers that draw hummingbirds and native bees, plus berries birds eat through summer.
• This is a true Ribes currant, not the dried Zante currant linked to dog poisoning cases.

Fall

Leaves turn a burgundy color and drop through fall, and this is also when the fungus that causes blister rust can linger in fallen leaf litter under a golden currant.

• Rake up and remove fallen leaves instead of leaving them under the shrub, to lower the chance of blister rust returning next year.
• Fall's mild, cooling weather in the Los Angeles area is also a good time to plant a new golden currant or transplant one.
• Skip heavy pruning now and wait for the plant to go fully dormant in winter.

Cleaning up dropped leaves in fall keeps the bed looking tidy for anyone walking by.

Winter

Winter is when golden currant starts blooming in the Los Angeles area, with clusters of golden yellow flowers opening while the shrub is still bare or just leafing out. It is also the best time to do any real pruning.

• Prune in late winter before flowering starts, taking out old or crowded stems rather than shearing the whole shrub.
• Avoid pruning in late fall, since it pushes tender new growth right when the plant should be resting.
• Cut back watering to about once a month, since Los Angeles winter rain usually covers the rest.

Early yellow blooms in the dead of winter give the front yard color when most other plants look bare.

Spring

Spring is when golden currant finishes blooming and pushes new leafy growth around Los Angeles. The tubular yellow flowers that opened in late winter keep drawing hummingbirds into spring, and the soft new shoots are the part aphids go after first.

• Watch new growth for aphid clusters and hose them off before they spread.
• Hold off on major pruning until after flowering finishes so you do not cut off the current bloom.
• Keep watering regularly while the shrub pushes new leaves, then taper off as summer approaches.

The yellow spring flowers and hummingbird visits make this a good front yard accent while it is in bloom.

Summer

Summer in the Los Angeles area is dry heat, and this is where golden currant's chaparral roots show. Once established it wants very little water, and a deep soak roughly twice a month is plenty even in the warmest months.

• Soak deeply about twice a month in summer rather than watering shallowly and often.
• Give inland plantings afternoon shade if the leaves start looking scorched or thin.
• Ripening berries in early summer feed birds, so leave some fruit on the shrub rather than picking it clean.