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Arctostaphylos manzanita

Arctostaphylos manzanita Parry

Whiteleaf Manzanita, Big Manzanita, Manzanita

Ericaceae (Heath Family)

Synonym(s):

USDA Symbol: arma

USDA Native Status: L48 (N)

This manzanita is an erect, usually 6-12 ft., evergreen shrub, with long, crooked branches and smooth, dark, red-brown bark. Leaves are bright green and the inflorescences of white or pink, bell-shaped flowers are drooping. Berries are white at first, later becoming deep red. Large evergreen shrub, sometimes a small tree commonly branching near base, with stout, crooked, twisted trunks and branches and dense, rounded crown as broad as high.

Whether manzanitas should be considered trees is debatable; a few of the approximately 40 native shrubby species mainly in California (including this one) reach tree size. However, they generally branch or fork near the ground, thus lacking the single trunk of a tree. Manzanita is a Spanish word meaning "little apple." The mealy berries are consumed in great quantities by wildlife of many kinds and were eaten by Indians, who also made them into manzanita cider. The dense evergreen foliage provides shelter for birds and small mammals; deer and goats browse the leaves and twigs. The handsome reddish-brown branches become twisted into odd shapes which are trimmed into collectors' items called "mountain driftwood."