Gooseberry most often refers to cultivated plants from two species of the genus Ribes:
Ribes uva-crispa native to Europe, northwestern Africa and southwestern Asia. Ribes hirtellum, American gooseberry Hybrids between Ribes hirtellum and Ribes uva-crispa, including most of the modern gooseberry cultivars The common name is also used for the following botanical groups.
Ribes Gooseberries may be used to describe the genus Ribes as a whole, or particular wild species of Ribes contrasted with currants, including:
Plants unrelated to Ribes
Gooseberries may also be used to describe tropical plants producing fruit superficially similar to Ribes fruit. This includes:
Byrsonima lucida, the "Long Key" gooseberry, native to the Caribbean Ceylon gooseberry, a species of Dovyalis, native to Sri Lanka and southern India Chinese gooseberry or kiwifruit, the edible berry of a cultivar group of the woody vine Actinidia deliciosa and hybrids between deliciosa and other Actinidia species Curio herreanus, a succulent native to South America that superficially resembles gooseberry Pereskia aculeata, the Barbados gooseberry, an unusual cactus Within family Phyllanthaceae: Phyllanthus emblica, the Indian gooseberry or emblic Jamaican gooseberry tree, an herb-like plant The "Star gooseberry", meaning either: Phyllanthus acidus, the "Otaheite gooseberry", the only Phyllanthoideae with edible fruit, or Sauropus androgynus, a shrub grown in some tropical regions as a leaf vegetable Within family Solanaceae: Physalis angulata, also called balloon or cutleaf groundcherry Physalis peruviana, Cape gooseberry, indigenous to South America Withania somnifera, Poison gooseberry
