I'm growing this plant in Ojai, and in reality it's native range is northern Santa Barbara County, north. Acquired from Santa Barbara Bot...Read Moreanical Garden 3 years ago (2018). Great plant but won't survive here in Ojai without summer supplemental water and summer shade. Growing under north side of spreading live oak, so gets morning and afternoon sun. Gets 1 gallon of water per month in the summer and at least last year that seemed satisfactory. This year put on about 3-4' of new growth because of late spring rains. Spreading shrubby habit. Leaves large and maple like, but not glossy. More felt -like. Modest blooms this spring, but this was first year. If I had known this species was too far south for it's native range I would have skipped it and acquired another Ribes malvaceum. However, it's in the ground now, so we'll see what the future brings for it. According to Calflora there are no known records for the plant growing naturally in Ventura County. Saw no pollinators on the flowers last year.
I'm growing this plant in Ojai, and in reality it's native range is northern Santa Barbara County, north. Acquired from Santa Barbara Bot...Read More