WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Ribes aureum, WUCOLS IV

How often to water golden currant in California

In July in the Central Valley, established golden currant in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days: about 8.8 gallons each time for a plant 4 feet across, about 3.0 gallons a week. Golden currant is a deciduous shrub native across much of North America, including California's oak woodlands and canyon bottoms. In spring it carries clusters of fragrant yellow flowers that age to orange or red, followed by small edible berries. It takes most soils and even seasonal flooding, and once established it gets by on little summer water.

ShrubCalifornia nativeUC Arboretum All-StarRated for 4 of 6 zones

How often to water golden currant, month by month

Your city
Plant width
4 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for golden currant and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Leaves wilting in summer heat while the soil is dry several inches down show it is due for a deep drink
  • A first-summer plant whose soil has dried 3 inches down needs a slow soak
  • Scorched, browning leaves on a plant in full inland sun point to sunburn, so move it into part shade
  • Bare stems in midwinter are its short winter rest inland, not a sign that it needs water
  • Yellowing leaves over ground kept wet through summer heat point to overwatering, even though it takes winter flooding

How to water it

  • Soak the root zone a foot deep through the first summer whenever the top few inches dry out
  • Once established, water deeply in summer only after the soil has dried well down
  • Site it in sun where summers are cool and in part shade inland, where hot sun burns the leaves
  • Plant it in almost any soil, including low spots that flood in winter
  • Mulch with fallen leaves and widen the watered ring as the clump spreads into a small thicket

Through the seasons

Water a new plant through its first summer while the roots spread, then cut back. Fragrant flowers open in spring and berries ripen afterward. Leaves turn reddish purple in fall. Inland they drop for a short rest from about late December to early February, while near the coast the shrub stays almost evergreen. From fall into spring, rain usually supplies the coast and the Central Valley. WUCOLS rates golden currant low water on the north-central coast, in the Central Valley and in South Inland. On the south coast it rates very low water. WUCOLS has not evaluated it for the high desert or the low desert.

In pots

Golden currant can grow for a few years in a large pot, where its fragrant spring flowers sit close to a door or patio. Use a free-draining mix in a container with holes in the base. In summer, press a finger 2 inches into the mix every few days and water once it is dry at that depth. Let water run out the bottom, and do not leave the pot in a full saucer. Inland, park it where it gets afternoon shade. While the shrub is leafless in winter, water only when the mix is nearly dry.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
1.07gal per sq ft in JulyLow water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
6.84 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.270.540.801.10.16JAN0.26FEB0.43MAR0.61APR0.83MAY0.99JUN1.07JUL0.95AUG0.72SEP0.47OCT0.22NOV0.14DEC0.270.540.801.10.16JFM0.61AMJ1.07JAS0.47OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 1.07 in Jul, 6.84 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Golden Currant: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.160.080.31––
Feb0.210.260.080.35––
Mar0.350.430.110.52––
Apr0.470.610.140.64––
May0.580.830.160.78––
Jun0.640.990.170.92––
Jul0.641.070.21––
Aug0.60.950.190.93––
Sep0.50.720.150.74––
Oct0.350.470.110.53––
Nov0.190.220.080.36––
Dec0.120.140.070.27––
Year4.86.841.557.37––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated low water in the Central Valley, like golden currant. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

LavenderLavandula spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRosemaryRosmarinus officinalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyOlive TreesOlea europaea ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCrape MyrtleLagerstroemia spp., hybrids & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySalviaSalvia greggii ssp., cvs. & hybridslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyAloeAloe spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySucculentsEcheveria spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRussian SagePerovskia spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWild PrivetLigustrum vulgarelow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCoralberrySymphoricarpos orbiculatus (SHADE)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySydney Golden WattleAcacia longifolialow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyBlue Leaf WattleAcacia salignalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes golden currant, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water golden currant in summer?

In July, established golden currant in loam needs a deep watering about every 20 days in the Central Valley, about once a month or less on the south coast and about every 22 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does golden currant need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established golden currant needs about 0.4 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across and about 1.7 gallons a day for a plant 8 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for golden currant change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates golden currant separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, low water in the Central Valley zone, very low water in the South Coastal zone, low water in the South Inland zone, not evaluated in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not evaluated in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Are golden currant berries edible?

Yes. The small berries are edible and can be baked into tarts. Their color varies from plant to plant, from yellow to red or nearly black.

Why doesn't my golden currant flower?

The interior variety, aureum, often flowers and fruits poorly in mild climates. The variety gracillimum, native from the Bay Area to Riverside County, flowers far more reliably there. Choose it for most California gardens away from the mountains.

Do hummingbirds visit golden currant?

Yes. Hummingbirds and bumblebees work the fragrant yellow flowers, and monarchs visit them in early spring. Later the berries feed thrashers, robins and other birds.

Can golden currant grow in wet soil?

Yes. It takes seasonal flooding and grows wild beside creeks, so ground that floods in winter suits it. Once it is established, keep summer watering occasional.

Does golden currant have thorns?

No. Currants have no spines and carry their flowers in clusters, unlike gooseberries. Golden currant makes a clean shrub without sticky leaves.

Will golden currant grow near the ocean?

Yes. It flowers within a mile of the ocean in Malibu. On an exposed bluff, plant it behind a wall, fence or gully that blocks the wind.

More plant watering guides

Cider GumSwamp MahoganyFlooded GumRed IronbarkEvergreen EuonymusCrown of ThornsCreeping SpurgeRigid Spurge

Sources